Team Itachi: Shippuden
by Killer of thy Cookies
Summary: The sequel to Team Itachi. Naruto finally returns from his three-year trip with Jiraiya, but evil enemies known as the Akatsuki await him. With the help of his trusty best friends Sasuke and Sakura, as well as his powerful sensei Itachi, Naruto must fight for his life as well as the safety of the ninja world. NaruSaku, AU.
1. Naruto's Return: Homecoming

**You guys didn't have to wait long, but I'm just going to act like you did - YES, _Team Itachi: Shippuden_ is finally HERE. **

**This is the sequel to my other story, _Team Itachi_, so if you're a new reader, just pop on over there to read it first. **

**First and foremost, welcome to my newest story, _Team Itachi: Shippuden_. I've got high hopes for this one and I really hope it can surpass _Team Itachi _in number of reviews. **

**Obviously arcs like the Sasuke and Sai Arc as well as the Itachi Pursuit Arc can't be implemented into this story for very obvious reasons - so YES, I will be replacing them with arcs of my own. I have already thought out some of them, but of course you readers won't know anything about them until we come to it. **

**Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce to you... **

_**Team Itachi:**** Shippuden**_**... **

**The first chapter! **

* * *

"Excited?"

"Hm?" Naruto cast a glance towards his mentor. "Of course! I haven't seen everyone for so long! I can't wait to go back!"

Jiraiya grinned. "Naturally."

The pupil-teacher duo casually stepped into one of the many forests in the Land of Fire. At the end of this pathway was their destination.

Konoha, the Hidden Leaf Village. Home.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you about this."

Naruto held up his right hand, winking at Jiraiya.

"Eh?" The old Sage raised an eyebrow.

To his surprise, a familiar blue spiraling sphere formed in Naruto's single hand. What surprised him more was the fact that no Shadow Clones had been summoned.

Naruto deactivated, and cheered.

"I did it!"

"Well, it is impressive," Jiraiya admitted, getting over his initial surprise quickly. "But... Rasengan is meant to be formed with one hand, you know..."

Naruto scowled.

Jiraiya chuckled heartily.

Then, he stopped, although there was still a wry smile present on his face.

Naruto stopped as well, yawning, before drawing a strange-looking three-pronged kunai. "Come on out, whoever you are!"

Five masked men leaped out from hiding, glaring at the two shinobi. From their attire, one could tell that they were bandits.

"Good-for-nothing bandits," Naruto growled.

"Give us your money," the apparent leader of the five demanded. "Or we'll take both your money, and your life!"

Jiraiya and Naruto ignored the five and walked past them, much to the leader's chagrin.

"Let's go, boys!" He called, and sped toward his intended victims.

But the leader suddenly froze, as Naruto turned his head slightly back and gave them the scariest glare they'd ever seen in their lives. A massive wave of killing intent washed over the five bandits and they fell to their knees, trembling.

Satisfied, Naruto turned away from them, and continued walking forward with Jiraiya.

The leader continued to stand frozen in place.

He could have sworn he'd saw the boy's pupils turn from blue to red.

"You should really watch that glare of yours. It can be really, really scary," Jiraiya remarked, although he didn't seem the least bit afraid.

Naruto shrugged. "Those assholes were asking for it."

They continued on their way to Konoha, with little issue.

* * *

"Haaaaa!"

Sasuke swung a fist.

Itachi blocked it easily and grabbed onto Sasuke's wrist. He was forced to release it as Sasuke's other fist came rushing towards his abdomen, forcing him to dodge by jumping back.

"Hyaa!"

Sasuke leaped into the air, and aimed a flying kick.

Itachi side-stepped, easily avoiding the hit.

With another roar, Sasuke kept up the assault with a series of punches.

Itachi blocked them all, but was eventually punched in the cheek and fell to the ground.

"Is that all you got, brother?" Sasuke grinned, cracking his knuckles.

Rubbing his new bruise, Itachi was soon up on his feet.

"Nope," the older Uchiha smiled, getting into a fighting stance.

Returning Itachi's smile with a smirk of his own, Sasuke charged, his foot flying up to kick his target. Instead, he kicked the air. Itachi was swiftly behind him.

Sasuke turned sharply, but was too late to stop a punch coming from Itachi, that landed on his cheek.

Or maybe not.

Sasuke turned into a log.

"Good work," Itachi complimented, turning to see Sasuke behind him.

The younger of the two siblings smiled widely. Feeling rather hot, he took off the black singlet he was wearing. It bore the Uchiha symbol at the back. Itachi was wearing something similar.

"Is that all you got, Sasuke?" Itachi then teased.

Sasuke shot Itachi a glare that was meant to look fierce. Instead, the look on his younger brother's face was somewhat amusing.

Itachi beckoned. "Come on, then."

His singlet back on, Sasuke charged, his first attacks being a series of kicks.

"You seem pretty enthusiastic today," Itachi commented, as he dodged the last of the kicks.

"Of course," Sasuke replied with a small smile on his face, as Itachi ran towards him with his fist raised.

The crow summoner lifted himself off the ground, and aimed his fist straight for Sasuke's face.

Impressively, Sasuke dodged it - despite the fast nature of the attack, and followed this up with a strong kick straight into his brother's nose, knocking Itachi to the ground. Instead of yelling in pain though, 'Itachi' became a flock of crows that started ascending into the sky.

"He's coming back today, after all."

* * *

"Are you certain?"

"Very, Sakura," Tsunade smiled at her pink-haired pupil. "Jiraiya sent me a message earlier on. Naruto is returning today!"

"Oh." Sakura replied lamely. Then, her insides started bursting with excitement. She tried not to let most of it show though.

However, she failed miserably, and Tsunade was amused at the excited half-grin Sakura had on her face. "He should be at the gates in an hour or so," she provided helpfully.

Sakura stepped quickly towards the exit of the office. "Oh, right. I'll see you later, shishou..."

Shizune shot a quizzical look at Tsunade as Sakura rushed out of the Hokage's residence into the streets of Konoha.

The past few years had felt weird without Naruto in her life. She had missed him - a lot. There was of course, Sasuke, Itachi and the rest of her friends, but strangely, nothing had been able to compare to the knucklehead ninja. Not even her dear Sasuke-kun.

Tsunade had once pointed out that she was in love...

_"Sakura." _

_14-year-old Sakura Haruno did not respond, simply glancing up into the ceiling. _

_"Sakura!" _

_Sakura jumped in fright. _

_"Pay attention!" Tsunade shrieked. _

_"O-Oh right. Sorry shishou." _

_Sighing, Tsunade glanced at her. "What were you thinking about? You seemed pretty... engrossed." _

_"Naruto," Sakura blurted out. Then she looked away. "You know, just thinking about how he's doing and all that..." _

_"Hmph," Tsunade smirked. "You're in love, aren't you?" _

Sakura had denied it. In love with Naruto?

Definitely not.

But where had her initial obsession with Sasuke gone? Why was she now rushing home to make sure she was looking as best as she could? These questions struggled to be answered.

She ignored them for now, walking briskly towards the apartment she shared with her parents.

As Sakura reached her door, a thought flashed through her mind. It was a reminder, a reminder of something good. It made her smile.

_Naruto... is back. _

* * *

"I can see it! I can see it!"

Jiraiya stuck a finger into each of his ears. "Not so loud, idiot! I can hear you perfectly!"

"Hehe, sorry," Naruto apologized sheepishly. "I was just excited."

He then broke into a run towards Konoha.

_Urgh, he has unlimited stamina,_ Jiraiya thought, and started charging after his pupil.

Naruto stopped at the gates of Konoha, and Jiraiya pulled up beside him, panting.

The poor Chunin on guard duty today were Izumo and Kotetsu, and they were in shock at the sight of Naruto, decked in his brand new orange and black suit, racing into the village. Jiraiya followed right after.

Finding a pole, Naruto pushed chakra into his feet, and leaped onto the top of the pole.

"The village hasn't changed at all!" He remarked, and his line of sight moved towards the hardly unnoticeable Hokage Monument. "Hey, they added Grandma Tsunade's face up there!"

His mentor took a moment to glance at the newest addition to the stone faces of the Monument, before looking up the pole. "Seriously, Naruto, get down from there."

Naruto landed on the ground, a wide grin on his face.

"Naruto nii-chan!" A familiar voice called.

Naruto turned at the source of the voice, and his grin turned even wider. "Konohamaru!"

His protege yelled his name again as he reached. Meanwhile, Jiraiya excused himself, making a beeline for the Hokage's to report Naruto's return to Tsunade.

"How are you doing?" Naruto asked, his hand ruffling Konohamaru's hair.

"Great! What about you? What kinda cool new jutsu did you learn?!"

Naruto gave a playful pout. "The first time you see me in three years, Konohamaru, and you ask me about jutsu, huh?"

Konohamaru smirked. "Come on! Spill it!"

Clearing his throat, Naruto stretched. "Well, since you ask, I'll show you my new and improved... Sexy Jutsu!"

Konohamaru's eyes lit up.

Then he nervously turned and fled the scene.

Naruto did the required hand seals. Dog. Boar. Ram. Then, he noticed Konohamaru running away as if there were a hundred flesh-eating dogs on his tail.

"Hey, don't you wanna see my jutsu anymore?"

It was apparently not heard, as Konohamaru continued fleeing.

Shrugging, Naruto turned.

A very familiar pinkette stood behind him, with the fiercest glare present on her face.

"AHHH! S-Sakura-chan!" Naruto said nervously, backing away.

"The first time I see you in three years, and you go babbling about your pervertic jutsu, eh?" Sakura's hand balled into a fist, hitting Naruto's head hard. "Little pervert!"

The Uzumaki teen groaned as he nursed his new bruise. "O-Ow... that hurt, Sakura-chan..."

Sakura sighed. Maybe she'd overdid it a little. She looked at Naruto again, looking him over from head to toe. He'd gotten a lot taller, and although he was still wearing something that was disastrously orange, he had at least lost that baggy outfit that he'd worn as Genin. He'd even grew handsomer... maybe even more so than Sasuke.

She blushed at such a thought, and turned around. Unfortunately, Naruto noticed it.

"Are you okay, Sakura-chan?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine."

Sakura looked back, and her brows furrowed when she followed Naruto's line of sight. It was directed at her butt.

_Is he... is he checking me out?_ She quickly turned back to face Naruto and could have sworn his lips had curled downwards a bit. _Well... he did travel with Jiraiya-sama after all... _

"Sooo, how have you been?" He asked, placing his hands at the back of his head.

His eyes widened as Sakura pulled him into a hug.

"I've missed you a lot," she muttered shyly. "It's... it's good to have you back."

Naruto laughed, and returned the hug. "Yeah! It's good to be back!"

She released herself from Naruto awkwardly, on the other hand, the spiky-haired Chunin still had that foxy grin on his face.

"Come on, Naruto," Sakura murmured, just loud enough for Naruto to hear. She took him by the hand, catching him by surprise once again. "I'll lead you to Tsunade-sama. You'll need to tell her you've returned."

She blushed again at her boldness, but her grip on Naruto's hand simply tightened.

Naruto still had a look of shock on his face, but it eventually eased into another wide smile.

He felt the need to say something as they were closer to the Hokage's.

"You've grown a lot more beautiful, y'know, Sakura?"

She felt happiness culminating within her - maybe a little too much.

* * *

"Shishou! Naruto's back!"

Sakura opened the door to the Hokage's office. Jiraiya was already standing there. Tsunade looked at the two members of Team 7, and nodded in approval.

"Hey, Grandma!" Naruto greeted.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed. "Stop calling me Grandma, you brat!" She relaxed, stretching her arms. "So, how have you been, Naruto? Did Jiraiya teach you anything indecent?" She shot an accusing glare towards the Toad Sage.

"He brought one or two prostitutes into our inn rooms before," Naruto shrugged. "I don't know what they were doing but the Pervy Sage said something about bonding. The Pervy Sage won't tell me why they bonded while screaming and shouting though-"

"Shut up, kid!" Jiraiya yelled.

"Jiraiya..." Tsunade growled, as her old teammate stared nervously at her.

Sakura bit her lip, wanting to say something, but reminded herself that Jiraiya was an elder she needed to respect.

Naruto watched on cluelessly.

"Knock knock." A voice comically called on the other side of the door, as knocks began rapping on it.

"Who's there?" Naruto yelled with a stupid grin.

"Um... Itachi. Itachi Uchiha."

"Itachi Uchiha who?" The ramen addict laughed.

Itachi opened the door and entered. "Naruto!"

"Itachi-sensei!" Naruto shrieked.

"Not so loud, idiot! I'm right beside you!" Sakura screamed into his ear.

Jiraiya nodded sagely, having experienced Naruto's loudness just recently in the forest. Then he shot a thankful gaze at Itachi, having been saved from Tsunade's potential outburst.

"Come on in," Itachi called to a shadow standing outside.

Sasuke Uchiha stepped in with a smirk. "Yo, Naruto."

Naruto ran over, giving Sasuke a hi-five. "Sasuke!"

As the reunited best friends caught up, Itachi turned to Tsunade, presenting her with a mission scroll.

"We're back from our mission," he reported. "Just in time too, it seems."

"Yes," Tsunade nodded, accepting the scroll, chucking it aside without bothering to read it. "Since Naruto is back, the four of you can go on missions as a team again. The three Genin and one Jonin sensei of the previous Team 7 will now be reformed into Team Itachi. All of you will work as Leaf shinobi, as equals."

"I understand," Itachi bowed.

"But first, I want to personally know first-hand what he's been up to these past three years," the Fifth smiled.

"What do you have in mind, Hokage-sama?"

The busty village leader looked up.

"What about... a training exercise?"

* * *

**I was expecting to complete this by Saturday evening, but it's 8.45am as I'm writing this. Well, it's always good to be early, I suppose. **

**Put a dose of NaruSaku in there because I am such a NaruSaku fanboy. But ultimately this story is about Team Itachi, so don't expect too much on the romance part. **

**In the next chapter, the new Team Itachi does their first training exercise together in three years. Meanwhile, a mysterious individual invades Sunagakure in search of the Kazekage. Now who might that be? **

**Question of the Day: Which character do you hate the most in Naruto? **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews. **


	2. The Yellow Flash: Naruto's Growth

**I'm back with the second chapter. The support so far has been excellent. I wasn't expecting the review count to shoot up to 12 by the 1st chapter. **

**To every reader who hates the idea of Naruto getting with Sakura, now you know how I feel every time a story I like has a NaruHina pairing ;) **

**Also, if you're a real hardcore NaruHina or SasuSaku fan, I suggest you turn back now, before you get addicted to this story :P **

**And in case any of you are wondering, my least favorite character, other than the obvious choices of Danzo, Kabuto, and Orochimaru, would be a tie between the Second & Third Tsuchikage and the Konoha elders. Pricks, the lot of them. **

_**gameipedia**_**: I'm genuinely interested why you think NaruHina is more canon - enlighten me. **

_**15dragondream**_**: Thanks for the support! Orochimaru is such a sicko, isn't he? I like Nagato, but not Pain - does that make sense? Haha. **

_**Arch The Ripper**_**: Yes, Sai will appear! **

_**onecsm**_**: Glad to see you back for the sequel! Thanks for the support! **

_**LONGNodaichi**_**: Not very sure about that to be honest :/ **

_**SonYukiGoku'sSister**_**: Yes, Kakuzu is quite a creep. I mean, five hearts...? **

_**Verge Redgrave**_**:****Lieutenant Douchebag made me crack up! Thanks for the support! **

_**TheOrangeStar802**_**: Woo, you're baaaaack! Who would you rather Naruto end up with? :P **

_**Pingeon**_**: Hopefully! ;) **

_**Radiant Celestial Aura**_**: Welcome to the sequel then! Enjoy. **

_**Mr. Haziq**_**: Indeed.**

_**Maria Antonieta**_**: I actually like constructive criticism - they are what push me to do well for every single chapter. :) Thanks for the review! **

**Thanks to _gameipedia, 15dragondream, Arch The Ripper, onecsm, LONGNodaichi, SonYukiGoku'sSister, Verge Redgrave, TheOrangeStar802, Pingeon, Radiant Celestial Aura, Mr. Haziq _and _Maria Antonieta_ for the reviews! _  
_**

**This is the first time I've replied to every single review :P **

* * *

"A training exercise, huh?"

It was the second day Naruto had spent in Konoha since returning from the three-year trip. Itachi had announced a team training exercise, and Naruto was all pumped up for it.

"Woo hoo, let's get it started!"

Team Itachi stood in the Third Training Ground, ready for whatever Itachi had to throw at them. What Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura didn't know, however, was that Tsunade, Shizune and Jiraiya were hidden behind one of the large trees, observing them.

"This place sure brings back memories," Sakura smiled, looking around. The Third Training Ground had been where Team 7 conducted their first training exercise, the bell test.

Sasuke walked to the front. "But before that..."

He grinned at Naruto, who returned his grin with a clueless look.

"... I wanna fight you, Naruto!"

"Ohhh, this should be good," Jiraiya muttered. Tsunade nodded in agreement.

Before Itachi or Sakura could say anything else, Naruto grinned as well. "Sure, Sasuke!"

Sakura didn't really approve. _Still, it'll be pretty entertaining to watch. _

Itachi remained silent, but finally spoke up. "Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt."

"Oh yeah. It's gonna hurt badly for Naruto," Sasuke smirked.

Naruto smirked as well. "We'll see about that, Sasuke."

Itachi looked away. _Oh boy. _

* * *

The combatants, Naruto and Sasuke, stood some distance away from each other, both keeping their eyes trained on the opposition. Itachi and Sakura stood some distance away.

Joining them in watching were the hidden Tsunade, Shizune and Jiraiya.

"When's it gonna start?" Tsunade asked. "All they're doing is looking at each other. C'mon! We want some action!"

"Patience, Tsunade-hime," Jiraiya chuckled softly.

Sasuke stared Naruto down. "I want you to come at me with everything you've got, Naruto!"

Naruto nodded. "I wouldn't have it any other way."

Sasuke's smirk showed again. "Good. Let's see what new skills you picked up."

In response, Naruto's hand flew to his waist.

Sasuke blinked as he saw a belt. It had been unnoticeable on Naruto's waist - the color of the belt blended in perfectly with his pants.

The Uchiha expected him to draw a sword, but to his surprise, the knucklehead ninja produced a weird-looking three-pronged kunai instead. Shrugging, Sasuke activated his Sharingan.

Itachi's eyes narrowed at the sight of the three-pronged kunai. _Is that...?! _

Neither Naruto nor Sasuke attempted to make a move.

However, Naruto suddenly threw the kunai in his hand, much to Sasuke's surprise. He easily dodged it, but it had seemed too easy - as if the kunai had not been intended to strike him at all.

As the kunai flew past Sasuke's face, Naruto charged up a Rasengan in his right hand.

Done with dodging the three-pronged weapon, Sasuke turned back to face Naruto, but to his surprise, he was gone.

"Rasengan!"

Sasuke gasped as Naruto's Rasengan slammed into his back, throwing him forward in a spiraling manner. "Wh-What?!"

_So it's true then...! _Itachi thought. _He has... he has really learnt the Hiraishin! _

Tsunade turned to Jiraiya with a look of shock. The accomplished author simply gave his former teammate a wink.

* * *

_"The Yondaime Hokage... is my father?" _

_Naruto stared at Jiraiya in shock. _

_"But why... why would he seal the Kyuubi within his own son?" He said angrily, clawing at his stomach. _

_Jiraiya had an uncharacteristically serious look on his face. "It was either you or the village." He stood up, gazing at the scenery below the cliff they were currently on. _

_Naruto's glare softened. "Y-Yeah... I suppose..." _

_"Don't blame Minato." Jiraiya closed his eyes, silently mourning his long dead student. "He... I believed he didn't want to do it either. No one expected the Kyuubi to attack the village. The three of you... the three of you were supposed to be a happy family." He sighed. _

_Naruto felt himself tearing up, starting to find reason within Jiraiya's explanation. If he had been the Yondaime, he probably would have done the same thing. It would have broken his heart, but he would have done it. As Jiraiya had said, it was either him... or the village. _

_Wiping away the tears that had formed, Naruto suddenly remembered something, and cast an angry glance towards Jiraiya. "But why didn't I know? All this time... And I only find out who my father is on my 14th birthday?"  
_

_Jiraiya smiled awkwardly. Indeed, it probably wasn't the birthday present Naruto had been expecting. _

_"The old man didn't want you to know about it and go around telling everyone. If word got out that Minato had family... well, let's say there will be a lot of shinobi on your tail." _

_Naruto's eyes widened, finally understanding. Then he shook his head angrily. _

_"But if... if old man Hokage had told me... I would have kept it a secret! I should have known! I... I deserved to know!" _

_Jiraiya placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "Well, at least you know now." _

_Tears flowed down his cheeks as Naruto tried to compose himself. "What about my mother...?" _

_"She was a very strong woman," Jiraiya smiled, reminiscing. "Her name was Kushina Uzumaki. Boy, was she scary," he chuckled. _

_Naruto listened in wonder as the Sage told stories of his supposedly fiery mother. His anguish from earlier had long dissipated - although a bit of shock still remained. Who could blame him though? _

_"You are probably wondering why I'm telling you this when it's supposed to be an S-class secret of Konoha," Jiraiya said, getting out a scroll from his backpack. "That's because I think you deserve the right to know, as you've said... and also because I think it would be good to tell you about it before letting you learn... this." _

_The scroll was unrolled, and Naruto stared. Writings and writings were present on it, speaking of some kind of Teleportation Jutsu. _

_"No one but Minato and I have laid eyes on this scroll before," the toad summoner revealed with a half-hearted smile. "I'm giving it to you as your birthday present." He rolled the scroll up and tossed it over. _

_"What's this?" Naruto caught it, and began unrolling it again. _

_Jiraiya's expression turned serious again. _

_"Listed in that scroll is everything you need to know to master the Fourth Hokage's signature technique. The jutsu that made him known as the Yellow Flash... the Hiraishin." _

_Naruto gasped, enthralled. _

_"Happy birthday, kid."_

* * *

"How did you get there so fast?" Sasuke grunted, as he got back up.

Naruto stood where he'd stood before, wielding his three-pronged kunai. His only response was throwing the kunai at Sasuke again.

This time, instead of dodging it, Sasuke knocked it away with a kunai of his own.

To his shock, in a yellow flash, Naruto had appeared beside the three-pronged kunai with another Rasengan.

Sasuke managed to avoid this one - a narrow escape. Naruto's Rasengan pummeled into the ground, creating an explosion.

_I don't know what kind of jutsu he's using, but it seems he can teleport to anywhere the kunai goes. An advanced Teleportation Jutsu? _

Seeing his attack had failed, Naruto started launching into a series of punches and kicks. Sasuke managed to avoid every single one of them, but Naruto managed to land a punch on his chest.

Sasuke got knocked back, but was undeterred, as Lightning chakra was focused on his right hand into a Chidori.

"Don't need the hand seals to do a Chidori anymore, huh?" Naruto observed.

"Yep," Sasuke nodded, and then started roaring as he charged towards Naruto. "Eat this! Chidori!"

His jutsu was ruined as Sasuke tripped over something - and surprise, surprise, it was Naruto. Surprised, Sasuke looked up. Naruto was gone from the spot he'd been at earlier. It was no clone.

"How are you...? You didn't throw any of your kunai!"

Naruto smiled, simply shooting a knowing glance towards his chest that Sasuke didn't catch.

"Chidori True Spear!" Manipulating his newly-charged Chidori, Sasuke extended it towards Naruto.

"Rasengan!" A voice called below him, and Sasuke gasped as the second Rasengan of the day hit him square in his stomach, sending him spiraling away again once more.

"Fuck," Sasuke cursed, as he regained composure in mid-air and landed on his feet. _What kind of jutsu is this...? _

"Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Twenty Shadow Clones appeared behind him. The original Naruto revealed a scroll that had been strapped to his back, and unrolled it. It was a sealing scroll, and Sasuke waited in anticipation to see what would pop up.

Numerous three-pronged kunai were summoned from within the scroll and flew into the air, just above Sasuke.

"Now!" Naruto screamed.

The clones disappeared, reappearing in the air, each clone charging the Rasengan.

Sasuke's eyes widened as the clones started to rain down on him.

"Rasengan Barrage!" They called, as they continued their descent.

"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"

Itachi breathed in, before attacking the clones with his fireballs, just in time as the last clone was just centimeters away from Sasuke before getting dispersed.

"Eh, Itachi-sensei, what's the big idea?" Naruto whined.

Itachi smiled. "I'm sorry, Naruto, but if Sasuke gets beaten up too badly we won't be able to have the training exercise today."

Naruto shrugged. "Okay. You alright?" He put his arm around Sasuke, who nodded with a small smirk on his face.

_Amazing, Naruto. You've really trained hard,_ he thought, as he looked at his best friend.

"I think it's time for Sakura to flex those muscles of hers as well," Itachi said. Sakura grinned, punching the air. Naruto looked towards her, fairly interested to know what she'd been up to in the last three years. "So, here's the deal..."

He produced three bells from his back pocket.

Nostalgia stung Naruto as he stared at the bells.

"This training exercise... will be the same as the bell test you took as a Genin," Itachi shook the bells, making them ring. "You have five hours to take these bells away from me. If you all accomplish it, I'll treat all of you to dinner."

Naruto had a goofy grin on his face.

"No ramen," Itachi added quickly.

The grin disappeared into a pout.

"And if we still don't have the bells after five hours, we'll treat you to breakfast, lunch and dinner," Sasuke suggested.

Itachi nodded with a smile. "It's a deal."

* * *

"It's so damn hot in this desert, hm."

An Akatsuki duo trudged through the Land of Wind. They had been walking through the accursed desert for a day now - but finally, their destination awaited them.

Sunagakure, the Hidden Sand Village, was in sight.

"Excited to be back here, Sasori, my man?"

"Not exactly," Sasori grunted.

About a total of twenty Suna guards occupied the gates of the village, ready to attack anything hostile.

The two Akatsuki missing-nin witnessed as the captain of the guards proceeded to slaughter them all with ease.

"Good job, Sasori, my man, hm."

"Silence, Deidara." Sasori was annoyed by his partner's constant chattering. They walked towards the gates. "You remember me, I suppose?" He asked, as he reached the captain.

"Of course, Sasori-sama," the captain saluted him. "Right this way, please."

"No," Sasori said dismissively. "Deidara will be the one capturing the Jinchuriki."

"What about you?"

"I'll wait here. I'm not very interested in entering this pathetic village at all."

Deidara sighed, as his hand dug into his bag of clay.

"Are you sure you've brought enough?"

"Don't worry, hm. This is more than enough to take care of him."

Sasori shook his head. "It always pays to be cautious."

The mouth on Deidara's palm chewed on the clay, and coughed out a figurine of a bird. The blonde Akatsuki tossed it onto the ground, and the figurine enlarged. Deidara hopped onto it.

"Don't keep me waiting," Sasori warned in a threatening tone. "I hate waiting."

The bird's wings started flapping as Deidara made no attempt to respond.

Instead, he willed his clay pet to take off into the night air of Suna.

"Gaara Sabaku... Jinchuriki of the One Tailed Shukaku..." Deidara smirked. "... Let's see what you've got."

* * *

**I personally liked this chapter - what do all of you think? **

**In the next chapter, Gaara makes his first appearance since Jesus knows when, and Team Itachi kick off a team training exercise for the first time in years. **

**Question of the Day: Which Kekkei Genkai in the entire Naruto series is your favorite? **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews. **


	3. Deidara and Sasori: Invaders of the Sand

**I am so sorry for disappearing for two days! I've gotten a ton of reviews though, so I thank all of you for your continued support. All your answers to the Question of the Day are really awesome! :) **

**For me, my favorite Kekkei Genkai would be the two dojutsu - the Mangekyo Sharingan and the Rinnegan. **

_**Rain Dove**_**: I tried to make Naruto's reunion with Konohamaru and Sakura as non-canon as possible but it's not easy when you're writing it. I hope Naruto won't end up with Hinata, really, because, well, I just can't stand that pairing. But it does seem to be the direction Kishi is heading, so... :/ You're right about everyone having the right to like their own pairings though. :) **

_**SonYukiGoku'sSister**_**: I've already added a really tiny bit of Sasuke and Kin romance in the previous story but I honestly don't know where I'm headed with that pairing. I'll have to think about it. And of course Kakashi and Iruka are going to make an appearance! Won't be as often as in the anime/manga though. **

_**FrozenFlamingFire**_**: I looked him up, and now I hate him too! :P **

_**imsabbel**_**: I personally regard the job of 'Jonin sensei' as an 'experienced ninja' - as you can see from how there are no other Jonin sensei in canon except for Kakashi, Asuma, Kurenai and Guy, all of whom are experienced shinobi in their 30s. I can't really see Sasuke being a Jonin sensei at the age of 16. I mean, can you? Really? Sakura is still a Chunin by the way. And regarding the thing about the team, they are no longer a Genin team, obviously, and are instead a specific team formed by the Hokage to go on missions and such because they work together perfectly. And besides, if they weren't a team, there would be no story to tell. ;) **

_**Arch The Ripper**_**: There wasn't a drawback when Minato used it in canon, so I'm not going to change that. And you can combat the Hiraishin, but you will have to be a very skilled shinobi to do so. **

_**NTA FANFIC**_**: Hahaha love it!**

_**Pyr00tje**_**: Welcome to the sequel! Glad to have you back on the review train :) **

_**Gaaraxx33**_**: Thanks for the review! I like different pairings either, excluding NaruSaku because it is just plain awesome. This story is NaruSaku so you can guess who Naruto's going to end up with - in canon, I think he should go along with Sakura. There are just so many similarities to Sakura and Kushina, yet NaruHina fan girls still compare Hinata to Kushina that it's absurd. I'm just ranting now, haha. Enjoy the chapter! **

_**mydemonsangel**_**: You don't really have to wait because I'll be updating every day or every two days as long as I can! **

_**Lin**_**: Yo! Yes, Orochimaru does look like quite a pedophile, doesn't he? Nice to have you back on board for the sequel. :) **

_**BlueRingedUmbreon23**_**: Thanks for the kind words, I really appreciate it! I'm not going to bash anyone at all, as I believe I've stated before. I will not 'write to bash' but people may think I'm bashing because of the horrible way I'm going to portray Danzo though! He is horrible, you've gotta admit. Haha! **

_**hi1235**_**: Why use the Cursed Seal in a friendly spar? Sasuke's not as crazy as Naruto who goes all Rasengan on his friend's ass during a spar :P **

**Thanks to _Rain Dove, Fernlight, SonYukiGoku'sSister, FrozenFlamingFire, Verge Redgrave, TheOrangeStar802, imsabbel, Arch The Ripper, 15dragondream, DanteShindo, NTA FANFIC, Pyr00tje, Gaaraxx33, KoriryuVEX, mydemonsangel, Mr. Haziq, NewWings, demonic hellfire, Lin, BlueRingedUmbreon23, GreyJedi1, hi1235 _and _Ivyfeather319_ for the reviews!**

**That's a ton of reviewers! Wow! As I said before, thanks for the support! I really, really appreciate it! **

* * *

"What is that..?"

Deidara looked down from his clay bird. Three Suna shinobi were on a rooftop, pointing at him and whispering.

"So they've got guards watching out for an aerial threat too, hm. Clever," the former Iwa ninja muttered to himself. The mouth in his left palm spat out three clay spiders, and he smirked sadistically to himself.

Just as one of the guards were about to run off to inform the Kazekage, one of the spiders descended and attached itself to his face.

A small, noiseless explosion followed.

The surviving guards looked on in horror, before two more clay spiders appeared, and they suffered the same fate as their colleague.

"Katsu!"

"No-!"

Deidara chuckled to himself as the two guards slumped to the ground.

"Now, let's see, what should I do first... hm?"

"Nothing. You will be doing nothing."

Deidara's eyes widened, as he looked back.

A redhead, donned in the village's Kazekage uniform, stood facing him in mid-air. A suspension of thick sand was at his feet, acting as a floating platform.

"State your intention and purpose," came the cold voice of the Kazekage.

Deidara's initial shock quickly passed and he allowed a smirk to show again. "I've found you... Gaara Sabaku."

Gaara frowned for a moment, and then noticed the stranger's uniform. _So his target... is me. No... it's... _

Not hesitating for another second, Gaara pulled off his Kazekage robes and dropped it, allowing it to descend slowly towards the ground. He removed his hat, and tossed it away.

Now clad in his shinobi attire, Gaara prepared to fight.

* * *

Itachi took a moment to glance at his reformed team.

He had half expected Naruto to simply charge at him, but instead the blue-eyed blonde remained calm, with an almost emotionless expression on his face.

Taking a deep breath, he then nodded. "Begin."

That was everything Naruto needed, and he withdrew his three-pronged kunai, charging towards Itachi. Sasuke and Sakura, instead, chose to leap away from sight.

Naruto slashed the air, as Itachi ducked from his first attack.

Wielding his katana, Itachi swung it. Naruto countered the blade with his kunai, before using his left hand to grip onto the sword, leaving a seal.

"I know what this jutsu does, Naruto," Itachi took a few steps back, tossing his katana backwards. The weapon flew into the air behind him. "It won't work on me."

"We'll see about that," Naruto challenged.

Itachi shook his head with a wry smile. "If you flash away, I can instantly turn behind and defend myself," he replied. "So..."

"Rasengan!"

Startled, the Uchiha looked back, but was too late to prevent taking a Rasengan to the stomach, sending him spiraling away.

The Naruto that had executed the move gave a thumbs-up to his original, before dispersing.

"You didn't think I would hide a Shadow Clone around here, did you, Itachi-sensei?" Naruto grinned, as he walked towards the Jonin, who was now sprawled on the ground. "The clones are exact copies of me. Naturally, they know the Hiraishin." He crouched down, and reached for Itachi's pocket. "These bells are mine."

Itachi dispersed into a flock of crows.

Instantly, Naruto flung his three-pronged kunai away.

He quickly disappeared as Itachi failed in attempting to attack him from behind.

Appearing in a tree where his three-pronged kunai had landed, Naruto grunted. _He read it! _

"That was easy," Itachi's mocking tone frustrated the Yondaime's offspring greatly.

He looked up, revealing his activated Sharingan.

"Although... I think I'll have to take this training exercise a bit more seriously than the last time."

* * *

"Sand Shower!"

Gaara raised his arm, creating a sand cloud in the air that fired missiles at his opponent.

"So it's true then, hm. You manipulate sand," Deidara observed. His hand dug into his bag of clay. "This battle will be quite a bang."

Gaara waited in anticipation as Deidara's bird flew from side to side, avoiding the missiles. He wanted to look at the enemy's abilities before trying anymore attacks.

When Deidara simply continued dodging, Gaara willed the sand suspension underneath him to back off.

_I'll lure him away from the village before doing anything else. _

Deidara watched as Gaara flew away, and quickly followed on his winged pet.

"Is he trying to lure me out of the village, hm?" Deidara kept his eyes on Gaara as he continued chasing after the Jinchuriki. "The Kazekage, indeed."

Crowds of shinobi and civilians had gathered on the ground by now, watching in awe as their Kazekage swept through the village, followed by an unusual-looking bird, rode by a mysterious cloaked man.

"That..." Baki frowned. Kankuro stood beside him, watching the scene unfold in the sky. "... No doubt about it. His appearance... that uniform! It's the Akatsuki's... Deidara!"

"Deidara?" Kankuro questioned.

"Jiraiya-sama has a report of every known Akatsuki member currently in the organization," Baki murmured. "He sent us a copy."

Kankuro shook his head in disbelief. "How did he...?"

Baki ignored him, quickly turning back and running, barking orders at every Jonin ninja he saw. Kankuro followed him.

"So who's this Deidara...?"

"He's a former shinobi of Iwagakure," Baki replied, gritting his teeth. "He defected and worked as a terrorist bomber, before joining the Akatsuki. His fighting style involves the usage of clay explosives."

"Clay explosives? Terrorist bomber?" Kankuro frowned. "He's going to blow the village up!"

Baki shook his head, stopping and pointing into the sky. "No. Look."

Gaara had flew out of the village walls with his sand cloud, followed closely by his Akatsuki pursuer.

Kankuro's fists clenched. "We've gotta help him!"

"Kankuro, wait!"

The puppeteer ignored him, charging towards the village entrance. Baki growled with annoyance. He wanted to join Kankuro, but made his mind up swiftly and turned, continuing on the path he'd been on.

He had to inform the higher-ups.

* * *

Gaara turned back. He was some distance away from Sunagakure. Satisfied, he jumped and landed on the ground, his sand suspension disappearing. Deidara's clay bird reverted back into it's miniature form, and the blonde pocketed it as he landed on the ground as well.

"I suppose you know what I've come for, Gaara Sabaku, hm," Deidara smirked.

Sand began pouring out of Gaara's gourd. "I have no intention of handing it to you."

"As expected," Deidara sighed. "But once I'm done with you, you'll be mine, hm."

The sand formed into three gigantic spikes. "We'll see about that."

The spikes flew towards Deidara.

He easily dodged them, as his hand dug into his bag of tricks.

Gaara folded his arms, as a large number of shuriken made of sand formed in front of him. "Sand Shuriken!"

Deidara grunted, his hand withdrawing from the clay bag. Quickly, he made hand seals. "Earth Style: Hidden Mole Jutsu!"

He sank underground, reappearing moments later behind Gaara, his right hand making a throwing motion.

Living clay, shaped like small birds, began flying towards Gaara from Deidara's palm.

"Katsu!"

There was no need for the Kazekage to even turn, as the Sand Shield rose up quickly. The birds flew into and wedged themselves in the shield, and exploded. Despite the damage being neutralized by his shield, Gaara was still thrown back from the force of the explosion.

As he looked back at Deidara, Gaara could now see clay spiders, this time bigger than the birds, crawling towards him in a hurry.

The village leader raised his hand, and the sand from his gourd shot towards the spiders, wrapping each of them up in sand.

"Sand Coffin!"

His palm curled into a fist.

"Sand Burial!"

The clay spiders were crushed, resulting in an unintended explosion.

Deidara was annoyed at the sight. "Tsk!"

"It's useless," Gaara had a solemn look on his face. "Give it up."

Suddenly, the desert sand rose, as if it had came alive. Deidara quickly found himself trapped in a sand-made coffin. It slowly levitated into the air, Gaara's hand raising along with it.

"Damnit!" Deidara struggled. "You... you can manipulate the sand in the desert too?!"

"It's the end for you," the redhead said stoically. "Sand Burial!"

"Aaaaaarrrghhh!"

Then, to Gaara's surprise, instead of getting crushed, Deidara's body turned white, and exploded.

A hand reached out from beneath the sand, grabbing tightly onto Gaara's left leg. The young Kage looked down in shock as Deidara chuckled madly.

"All this time, the only guy you've been battling is a Clay Clone, hm!" He said tauntingly. "And now, it is the end... for you!"

Deidara's entire body turned white again.

_This...! A Clay Clone, as well...?! _

"Katsu!"

Gaara's eyes widened, trying to pull himself free, but the clay hand wound tightly around his leg wasn't budging.

An explosion followed.

In the air, Deidara sat on a clay dragon, stretching.

"Victory, hm."

* * *

Sasori watched the battle unfold from the village gates. His anger rose as Deidara attempted to make the young Kazekage explode.

_We have to bring him back alive. Doesn't the idiot know that?_

Footsteps alerted him and he turned. A hooded Suna ninja, accompanied by six of his colleagues in Jonin uniform, were racing towards him.

They stopped in front of him, glaring at him warily.

"I take it you won't allow us to pass without a fight," the hooded one said.

"Captain Kankuro, what do we do?" One of the Jonin asked.

The puppeteer glared at Sasori.

"We fight!"

Two of the Jonin began chattering, unable to believe they were going to face a dangerous missing-nin.

Sasori stared at them, not making a sound.

All of a sudden, a tail had sprung up behind him, lengthening towards the group of Suna nin.

"Watch out!" Kankuro called, jumping to the side. One of his fellow shinobi were not so lucky, and the sharp tip of the tail stabbed deep into his heart. The Suna ninjas watched in horror as Sasori's tail then flicked away the dead Jonin, as if he'd been tossing away the thrash.

His tail waved threateningly in the air.

"Urgh," Kankuro glared at the sharp tail. It changed direction and moved towards another Jonin. This one attempted to fight it off with a kunai, but the tail easily overpowered the short weapon and claimed another life.

The now dead man was also flicked away.

"If we don't make a move, he's going to continue killing us! Go, go, go!" Kankuro shrieked at his men, who were looking scared stiff.

One was too frozen to move, while the other three Jonin attacked.

Kankuro laid down two scrolls on the desert sand, summoning his puppets. Crow and Black Ant appeared.

As he looked up, the hooded ninja was horrified to see the three men that'd attacked thrown at his feet, huge holes in their chest. One was still alive with a small wound, but had turned deathly pale.

"Poison," Kankuro muttered.

The last Jonin was scared stiff.

"Move!" The Suna puppeteer screamed at him, as Sasori's tail came shooting towards him.

He seemed to find his limbs at the last second, diving to the left, but the tail followed and pierced him in the thigh, making him scream in pain.

Kankuro's eyes widened. "Kazuki!"

The tail came for him next.

Acting quickly, he summoned his next puppet.

"Salamander!"

The defense puppet popped up, shielding Kankuro from the unusual weapon.

Sasori stared at Kankuro's puppets with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Crow and Black Ant seemed to come to life, as Kankuro attached his chakra strings to his puppets. They raced towards Sasori.

"The puppet show..." He started, with a hateful glare aimed at his opponent. "... begins now."

* * *

**I'm finally done with this one! What do you think will happen to Gaara? **

**In the next chapter, Deidara finds out the result of his explosion didn't go as well as expected, while Kankuro battles Sasori! Meanwhile, Itachi and his team resume their bell test. **

**Question of the Day: Have you read Chapter 631? What are your thoughts about it - because I think it's bloody epic! **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews. **


	4. Sand and Explosives: Gaara vs Deidara!

**I'm finally done with this chapter after hours of hard work! Hope you guys enjoy! **

**Did any of you really think I would make the Gaara-Deidara battle THAT short? :P **

**And YES, the Kazekage Retrieval Arc, at least 1/2 of it, will be following canon. I'm sorry to disappoint anyone thinking otherwise! :/ **

**Some of you have been asking me about Itachi and whether he will go blind, and I'm predicting some of you is going to wonder about Naruto's eyes shifting to Kyuubi mode, basically, the color red. Well, those are going to be answered later on in the story. **

_**LONGNodaichi**_**: Itachi doesn't have the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan yet, meaning yes, he can go blind. Will he, though? Watch this space ;) **

_**imsabbel**_**: I've not really seen a 'permanent' team consisting of random Chunin and a Jonin before - only teams that have stuck together from Genin. The only times I've seen a Jonin leading a team of random Chunin who were not in the same team as a Genin - are on missions, they work together once, then they disband, so I'm going to be following something like that. **

_**Lin**_**: Hahaha your reaction is superb! One thing though, what's TMI? :P **

**I am feeling a bit lazy today so I've only replied to three reviews. Sorry! **

**Thanks to _TheOrangeStar802, Tara Terra, GreyJedi1, LONGNodaichi, imsabbel, Lin, Maria Antonieta, Arch The Ripper, Gaaraxx33_ and _15dragondream_ for the reviews!**

* * *

"Victory, hm."

A figure burst out from the smoke, and Deidara's brows furrowed.

"What?"

There was Gaara. His feet had been enlarged to humongous sizes, and there was a single tail on his back.

_What...?! He somehow increased the size of his feet to break out of my Clay Clone's grip! And that tail... is it the power of his Tailed Beast? _

Gaara's feet returned to their normal size, and his tail disappeared. His sand suspension formed underneath him, allowing him to be on eye level with his opponent.

"You almost got me there," the Kazekage acknowledged. "You figured out that you would be at a disadvantage if the battle was fought on the ground because of the sand. So, you formed a Clay Clone while pursuing me, to lead me into a trap with another Clay Clone of yours underneath the sand."

Deidara growled. "That was a perfectly-planned strategy. You were only lucky, hm!"

Gaara shrugged. "But there is one thing I don't get. Don't you need me... alive?"

"We Akatsuki do not need to answer to you, hm!" Deidara replied, a hint of annoyance in his tone. "But if you must know, I reduced the severity of the explosion to ensure you wouldn't be killed."

Gaara peered down. Smoke still engulfed the area. "Doesn't really seem like that to me, but whatever floats your boat."

Clenching his fists, Deidara yelled, and his clay dragon swooped towards Gaara. "Your ignorance to my beautiful art angers me, hm! I will show you the beauty that is art!"

He started cackling as the mouth on his clay dragon opened, firing numerous clay missiles.

"Because art... is an explosion! Katsu!"

Gaara rose into the air, as the missiles exploded below him. "Is that all you got?"

The former Iwa-nin cracked his knuckles in response. "More!" He screamed, and the dragon started firing more of it's missiles.

The Godaime Kazekage's sand suspension expertly flew from side to side, avoiding the missiles.

Deidara roared with anger.

He started to notice sand creeping onto his feet. Looking down, the Akatsuki ninja's eyes widened in shock. The clay dragon had been completely covered by the sand from below, which had risen up.

Deidara leaped off the dragon as Gaara's palm clenched into a fist.

"Sand Burial!"

The dragon exploded.

Gaara started moving his hand upwards.

The desert sand started rising again, this time to form a giant hand, that grabbed Deidara and trapped him.

"Let me outta here, hm!"

Gaara smiled. "You were too absorbed in your own anger to notice my sand behind you." His raised hand dropped, and jerked downwards. Immediately, the sandy hand rocketed towards the ground, smashing into the sand of the desert. "A shinobi should not let his emotions take over him in battle."

"Bastard," Deidara insulted. The hand had shattered apart into grains of sand as it'd hit the ground, freeing him from his confinement.

Or perhaps not.

The desert seemed to have come alive. He shrieked in fear as the sand rose to the height of his neck, and soon, he'd drowned in the sea of sand.

Gaara stood from his position in the air, raising his hand again. "Sand Tsunami!"

At his call, the desert's rage became even more evident, and Deidara found desperate need of air in his lungs, the sand now above his head.

"Giant Sand Burial!"

A shock wave flew through the tsunami, compressing it.

Deidara was subsequently crushed.

Gaara panted. "It is done."

* * *

"Urgh!"

Kankuro was knocked to the ground.

"Not yet... I can still...!"

He got up, then collapsed on one knee.

"Give it up, boy." Sasori sneered, his tail waving dangerously in the air.

Kankuro looked to the side. His puppets had been defeated easily.

"You said..." He started, already feeling the poison coursing through his body. "You said you are Sasori... of the Red Sand... but you left Suna... years ago... why would you... come back...?"

Sasori turned and started walking away. "The poison will kill you in three days." He stopped to turn his head back slightly. "Enjoy the torture."

Kankuro felt his vision turning hazy, and he slumped to the ground.

"Gaara... No..."

* * *

"It is done."

"Not yet, hm!"

Gaara gasped, noticing five clay birds the size of miniature figurines, dangerously close to his cheek.

"Katsu!"

His sand came rushing up, but it was too late.

The explosion knocked him off his sand suspension towards the ground. There were now a number of cracks on his face and chest.

Deidara, who had been on a clay bird in the air, descended, and punched Gaara twice in mid-air, before a final third punch that smashed the Kazekage's head against the desert ground, kicking up a plume of smoke.

It cleared, Deidara still with his fist in Gaara's face. He removed it, grinning.

The grin gave way to a frown as the cracks turned into sand. Deidara moved away quickly, as Gaara burst out of his Sand Armor.

_I see. It's some kind of armor similar to the one my man Sasori employs. _

Gaara huffed. He had used up quite an amount of chakra. Had he been fighting clones for the entire duration of the battle?

"How?" He muttered.

"How?" Deidara smirked. "What I said earlier was true enough. What I didn't tell you, though, was that I made more than two Clay Clones, hm! The whole thing about my clone getting mad was an act to make you lower your guard! Seems like it worked, although the result isn't really satisfactory, hm."

_This man is smarter than I've given him credit for,_ Gaara thought. _And his stupid tactic has worked, somehow. I've used up a lot of chakra... I'll have to call on Shukaku for help again if this goes on. _

"Looks like I've drained you to your last bit of chakra," Deidara spoke, noticing the furious sweating of his opponent. "It's time for me to end this battle, hm!"

Gaara slammed his palm onto the ground.

Deidara leaped up just in time, as the ground below him turned into a sand whirlpool of sorts, intent on sucking him in like quicksand.

Getting out a figurine of his C3 Dragon, Deidara enlarged it.

Riding the clay dragon, the Akatsuki member willed his creation towards the direction of Sunagakure.

"Stop!" Gaara yelled, the desert sand rising again. It formed into the shape of three sharp missiles, and fired towards Deidara. One struck him in the back, but the blonde burst into a plume of smoke.

_Shadow Clone?! _

Small clay birds began circling his body.

Gaara had only half a second to escape.

Of course, it was too late.

"Katsu!"

There was a loud explosion.

"The previous clones were all diversions, you see... for this big bang, and you fell for it, hm. I wasn't expecting that Sand Armor of yours, but..."

Deidara smiled evilly at Gaara, now lying unconscious on the ground with most of his battle suit torn and tattered.

"One down... hm!"

* * *

Naruto ran forward, punching Itachi in the stomach, but the Jonin became a flock of crows once more.

Meanwhile, Sasuke and Sakura looked on in the trees as Naruto started punching the air, as Itachi stood by the side, waving hand seals.

"He's got Naruto under a genjutsu!" Sasuke warned.

With no hesitance, the other two members of Team Itachi jumped into battle.

Sakura punched the ground, demonstrating her new-found strength, just as Itachi was ready to perform his jutsu. Seeing the ground starting to level and crack, he began to have other ideas, and used a Teleportation Jutsu to escape.

_**"Snap out of it, brat!" **_

_"Huh? Kyuubi?"_

**_"You're under the Uchiha's control, idiot!" _**

Naruto blinked, as the demon within him proceeded to break him out of the illusion.

_"Thanks, bastard fox!" _

**_"Tch. Don't push your luck."_ **

Naruto closed his eyes, then opened them again. Sasuke was rushing over.

"No worries, I'm out of it," he said, as Sasuke began to shake him.

Sasuke nodded. He could have sworn he'd saw Naruto's pupils switch colors to red, but decided not to mention it. "We have to find my brother quickly."

Naruto looked at the cracks on the ground, and gasped. "Wow! Who did that?"

The Uchiha gestured towards Sakura, who winked at him. Naruto's mouth formed a large o. He reminded himself not to mess with Sakura in the future. Well, at least not too much.

"From now on, we've gotta work together," Sasuke instructed his teammates. "We'll only be able to defeat Itachi by working together."

"Who made you the boss?" Naruto challenged.

"Who made you the Jonin... oh wait. Hahahaa!"

"Urgh! Shut up! I'm going to be Jonin sooner or later!"

Sakura rolled her eyes.

* * *

"I've got the Jinchuriki, hm- woah, what the fuck?"

Deidara's clay bird landed on the ground, an unconscious, bloodied Gaara in it's clutches. Surrounding Sasori were seven Sunagakure shinobi, most of whom were dead, with large, gaping holes in their bodies.

"I think you overdid it a little, Sasori, my man."

"I thought it was a good exercise," Sasori replied. "Let's go."

"Right." Deidara leaped back onto the clay bird, followed by his partner.

"Wait!"

The Akatsuki duo turned back. Baki stood there, with a small army of Jonin behind him.

"You are not getting away!" They cried. "Give us our Kazekage back!"

"Insects," Sasori sneered.

Deidara fumbled through his clay bag. _The One-Tails was pretty hard to beat. I've only got a bit of clay left. _The mouths on his palms went to work, and soon, he had a dozen explosive spiders.

He dropped them onto the Suna nin.

"Katsu!"

"Watch out!" Baki shouted, jumping back. "He uses explosives!"

Thanks to his warning, no one was severely injured - yet the smoke from the explosion obscured their vision. Deidara and Sasori had ample time to escape.

Baki's fists clenched.

_Gaara... _

* * *

**And it's a wrap. Thank you for reading thus far, guys. What did you think of the chapter? How do you think Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura are going to defeat Itachi? **

**Also, in before someone complains about Deidara's clone spam :P **

**In the next chapter, Team Itachi vs Itachi! Stay tuned. **

**Question of the Day: Can you count the amount of times Deidara fooled Gaara with a clone? **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews.**


	5. Training Exercise: The Might of Itachi

**Hello guys, and here I am with another chapter. **

**_demonic hellfire_: Your analysis of it is absolutely fantastic hahaha  
**

_**SonYukiGoku'sSister**_**: I'm not sure about that! You will have to wait and see. :) **

_**15dragondream**_**: That would be so mean of Naruto haha! **

_**Lin**_**: Oh, the conclusion is going to be really embarrassing for Itachi, trust me ;) **

_**Rain Dove**_**: I too feel Sasuke should have been defeated in the manga! Just pure dumb luck he managed to summon Manda in time :/ I'm happy enough you bothered to review! Thanks a lot! **

**Thanks to _demonic hellfire, GreyJedi1, SonYukiGoku'sSister, S.R.457, LONGNodaichi, 15dragondream, Fernlight, NTA FANFIC, Lin, Rain Dove, Tara Terra_ and _Awais _for the reviews!**

* * *

"Found him," Naruto whispered.

Sasuke nodded. "Let's go!"

From the bushes, Team Itachi leaped at their captain. Sakura had her fists balled, while Sasuke had channeled his Lightning chakra to form a Chidori Blade. Naruto wielded his Hiraishin Kunai.

_Coming at me together. The obvious tactic, and one that could work, but... can they match up to me?_

Itachi made hand seals. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

His fireball was avoided by the trio, and Sasuke attacked first, swinging his blade. Naruto threw his three-pronged weapon, and reappeared behind Itachi with a Rasengan. Sakura jumped into the fray, her fist raised, ready to land a devastating blow.

"There's no way you'll dodge this one, Itachi-sensei!" Naruto shrieked into his ear behind him, as he threw the hand containing his Rasengan forward.

The three attacks hit their target.

Itachi exploded with a loud boom.

The real Itachi Uchiha jumped down from his position up a tree, smiling.

A three-pronged kunai went near his face, and he drew his sword, bringing it up just in time as a hand appeared out of nowhere, gripping the Hiraishin Kunai and attempting to stab him with it.

Sword and kunai clashed.

"I knew it. Those were clones too," Itachi said, pushing his sword against Naruto's kunai.

"Yep, but we weren't banking on that Itachi being a clone," Naruto replied with a hint of annoyance in his voice. "Hey, is this a clone?!"

Itachi said nothing, but simply grunted.

Naruto's eyes widened as Itachi began to glow, before exploding.

Still within the bushes, Sasuke face-palmed. "I thought I told that idiot to wait..."

"Don't worry, I'm here!"

Naruto had reappeared beside Sasuke.

"I hit you in the chest during our little spar earlier and planted my Hiraishin seal on you. Seems like it worked for a different reason."

Sakura stared at Naruto curiously. "So, you can teleport to wherever the seal is?"

Naruto nodded. "Yup. I got the seal on these kunai too." He took out the scroll on his back, unrolling it again, and made a hand seal. One three-pronged kunai appeared, and Naruto grabbed it. "Anyway, we've gotta keep moving."

"I don't think so."

"Behind us!" Sasuke screamed.

Itachi grabbed onto Sasuke, pulling him back and then kicking him down. He placed a sword over his younger brother's neck.

Naruto flashed away to his seal on Sasuke's chest, readying a Rasengan. He smashed the spiraling sphere into Itachi's face swiftly upon teleporting to his destination, knocking the Jonin back.

Itachi didn't disperse.

"You're the real one!" Naruto exclaimed. "Let's go, guys!"

"Naruto, wait!"

Sasuke half-expected his friend to continue charging in, but to his surprise and relief, the blonde stopped.

Itachi became a flock of crows, all of them wielding Sharingan eyes.

"Genjutsu," Sasuke muttered. "Release!"

"Release!" Sakura cried.

Naruto placed his hands in a seal, but when he blinked, he realized he was already out of the genjutsu - thanks to the Kyuubi.

To their shock, Naruto's hand was just centimeters away from brushing against a log, with an explosive tag attached to it.

He quickly pulled his hand back, gasping.

"Fire Style: Great Dragon Flame Jutsu!"

The trio turned, to see a flame dragon descending on them.

"Step back," Sasuke muttered. He did a few hand seals. "Fire Style: Great Dragon Flame Jutsu!"

Another flame dragon emerged from his open mouth, clashing with the other. The result was a deafening explosion in the air, temporarily brightening the area. Itachi descended from a tree, his sword at the ready.

Sakura decided it was time for her to do some work. "Earth Style!" She yelled, slamming her palm on the ground. "Falling Earth Spears!"

Spears of mud rose from the ground, flying towards Itachi. He fought them off with his sword, but Sasuke was instantly behind him. "Chidori!" He shouted, thrusting his hand forward.

Itachi responded with a back-kick, knocking Sasuke back before he could unleash his attack.

However, Naruto suddenly appeared on Sasuke's chest, with a Rasengan in hand, and using Sasuke as a platform, leaped towards Itachi.

"That hurt, you idiot!"

"Rasengan!"

Itachi had his back to Naruto, as the son of the Fourth inched closer towards the Jonin.

_It's gonna hit!_ He thought excitedly.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu."

A clone of himself swiftly appeared behind Itachi, taking the full blow of the Rasengan for him. Naruto's eyes widened, as Itachi used the time bought to him by his clone to turn and swing his blade at Naruto.

The Jinchuriki flashed himself away at once, appearing beside Sasuke, who was now some distance away on the ground.

Sakura jumped into the fray. Itachi avoided her punches and kicks expertly, before jumping back as Sakura slammed her fist into the ground. Smoke and a loud boom followed.

As the smoke cleared, Itachi saw that a crater had been formed. He took a second to marvel at Sakura's chakra-enhanced strength.

However, one second was all Sakura needed as she as well as two Shadow Clones suddenly leaped out from beneath the earth, their fists all aimed at Itachi's head.

To her surprise, Itachi simply spun himself three hundred and sixty degrees with his sword wielded. The two clones were instantly dispersed, and Sakura fell back, a small cut now on her hip.

A Hiraishin Kunai flew towards him.

Itachi turned sharply as Naruto appeared, aiming a punch. The crow summoner caught his fist, and slashed him with his sword, but Naruto turned into a log.

"Chidori True Spear!"

Itachi turned again, to see a Chidori spear extending towards him.

Sasuke smirked as the Chidori True Spear had hit it's target, as well as exploding in a mass of Lightning chakra upon contact with Itachi.

The sound of an explosion filled his ears and when he blinked again, Sasuke caught sight of what his spear had actually made contact with: the explosive tag-attached log from earlier.

"Genjutsu again..."

Naruto was nowhere to be seen, and thus he rushed towards Sakura.

"Lightning Style: Lightning Barrier!"

Punching the ground, he erected his chakra-filled barrier, just in time as the radius of the explosion reached them. Naruto flashed to their side two seconds later.

As the explosion died down, Sasuke released his barrier.

"Water Style: Liquid Bullet!"

Sasuke swung around, the Chidori Blade forming in his hand as he did. He raised his chakra-created weapon up, slashing through the blast of water like a master swordsman.

"Impressive, Sasuke."

Itachi reappeared.

"Well, I suppose my genjutsu gave you guys a good workout, huh?"

"Earth Style: Mud Trapping Jutsu!"

Itachi frowned. Looking down, he saw that the ground below him had turned into mud that acted like quicksand. His feet had gotten sucked in.

Now behind the trapped Itachi, Sakura managed to land a punch.

However, as she made contact, Itachi began to glow.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto shrieked, throwing his Hiraishin Kunai towards the pinkette.

He flashed to her side, quickly grabbing onto her, and flashed back to his seal on Sasuke's chest.

Just in the nick of time as Itachi exploded.

"Thanks, Naruto," Sakura heaved a sigh of relief. "Where is he?" She asked, referring to her team captain.

Sasuke growled. "Stop toying with us, bro!"

"Fine."

The team turned, to see Itachi standing on a tree, leaning against it's trunk.

"Earth Style: Falling Earth Spears!"

Itachi jumped off the tree, avoiding the spears, and with his sword raised, aimed it for Naruto.

The blonde Chunin unsheathed a sword of his own. It had a yellow and orange hilt. Both swords clashed.

"Earth Style: Stone Plate Coffin!" Sakura made the Rat seal.

Naruto jumped away, as rock from the ground rose to form two pillars. Itachi jumped back as the pillars came together and smashed against each other, intent on crushing him.

Sasuke closed his eyes.

The marks of the Cursed Seal spread over his body, and he yelled as he lunged for Itachi. His brother was fast enough to counter his punch, but a kick soon followed.

Itachi was knocked off his feet, but he quickly got back up as Naruto attempted to slam a Rasengan down on his face.

"Earth Style: Earth Dragon!"

Itachi disappeared with incredible speed, dodging the attack as the mud dragon crashed into a tree and brought it down.

Sasuke followed, tearing off his shirt as wings began to sprout from his back. Quickly transforming fully into stage two of his Cursed Seal, he called on the powers of his Black Chidori.

"Chidori Lament!"

Itachi's hands flew into an array of seals.

"Water Style: Water Wall!"

A shield of water formed, blocking the Lament technique. The Lightning nature of the jutsu soon managed to allow it to cut through the wall of liquid, but Itachi was long gone, now behind Sasuke and unleashing a Fireball Jutsu.

Before the flames could reach him, Sasuke took flight with his wings.

Sakura panted, almost out of chakra. She only had a little bit left - insufficient even for one Earth Style jutsu.

Naruto noticed this. "Take a rest, Sakura-chan," he grinned at her, before throwing his Hiraishin Kunai towards Itachi, who had jumped into the air to combat the winged Sasuke.

He appeared just behind Itachi.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" He cried out quickly, and a clone appeared beside him.

Itachi turned his head.

The clone and the original placed their arms side by side.

A larger than normal Rasengan was charged up.

If Itachi was panicking, he did not let it show.

Sasuke then flew downwards, towards Itachi with a lowly-powered Black Chidori in hand - to ensure it would not be a fatal strike.

Naruto smiled widely.

Sasuke also had a toothy grin plastered on his face. _Let's see how you dodge this, brother! _

"Giant Rasengan!"

"Black Chidori!"

Both devastating techniques struck home, resulting in a colorful explosion. A barrage of lights filled the entire area.

Naruto and Sasuke strained their eyes, determined on discovering the fate of the former ANBU man.

To their dismay, he dispersed.

The two teenagers landed back on the ground, with Sasuke reverting back to his normal self.

"This is infuriating! It was a clone?" Naruto yelled, throwing his arms up in despair. "When did he-?"

Sasuke placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Calm down." He wasn't really one to talk, being astonished and frustrated at the same time that he'd spent a whole load of chakra on a Shadow Clone.

Sakura looked up. "Over there!"

Itachi stepped out from behind a trunk. He chuckled. "Looks like my Shadow Clone had it rough, huh?"

"Urgh," Naruto eyed the bells hanging out of Itachi's pocket. "Does he have any weaknesses at all?"

Sasuke thought for a moment, and then nodded slowly, and his voice dropped to a low whisper.

"Yeah... there's one."

* * *

"So... little Naruto got back earlier today, hm?"

Tsunade chugged down her sake. Shizune shot her a disapproving look.

They were in the Hokage's office. Jiraiya had remained to continue watching how the battle developed, but she had grown bored of Itachi's constant toying with his three opponents.

In front of her - her latest visitor, was her old sensei.

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled at her, awaiting a reply.

"Yes. He is at the training grounds taking part in a training exercise."

"Tsunade-sama was supposed to spectate, but she got bored," Shizune felt the need to add.

Hiruzen chuckled as Tsunade continued chugging down more sake.

"Oh, and he's not little anymore," Tsunade said, as she set down her empty bottle. "He's grown pretty tall."

"I could guess," Hiruzen replied, smoking on his pipe.

Tsunade snorted. "Hey old man, no smoking in the office."

Hiruzen started chuckling again. "Well, well, drinking in the office is prohibited as well, Godaime-sama."

Before Tsunade could retort, a female Leaf shinobi rushed into the room.

"Oi! What did I say before about knocking?!"

"A-Apologies, Hokage-sama! Greetings, Sandaime-sama," the kunoichi bowed respectfully.

"Let it go, Tsunade," Hiruzen had noticed the nervousness in the lady's voice. "What is the matter?"

"We... we just got this message from Suna," the office invader replied quickly, placing a scroll on Tsunade's desk.

The Fifth unrolled it.

As she read the first few lines, a feeling of dread boiled in her stomach.

* * *

**I personally don't think I did the fight scene too well, but what do all of you think? What do you think is Itachi-sama's weakness?**

**In the next chapter, the training exercise concludes and Team Itachi are sent on their first mission as a team. **

**Question of the Day: Up there! What do you think is Itachi's weakness? **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews.**


	6. Mission, Begin: Kazekage Rescue

**This chapter is illegally short, but I've been suffering a minor block in my head at the moment so bare with me. Hopefully the next chapter will be better. **

**It was really, really hilarious reading every single guess on what Itachi's weakness was. Thanks for all the reviews, guys! **

**I got a bit lazy today so I'm not replying to any review - but do know that I read every single one of them and appreciate every word. Thank you! **

**Thanks to _atem4yami, TheOrangeStar802, 15dragondream, imsabbel, Mr. Haziq, GreyJedi1, S.R.457, Lin, bon123, shoto94, Iron Wasp, FrozenFlamingFire, Mr. Lionheart, AFlashofSilver, beisenman1892 _and _Jove99 _for the reviews! **

* * *

Itachi looked around.

He was in an open clearing. His hand rested on the hilt of his katana. Two hours had passed since the exercise. Itachi wondered what his former students would pull next.

_They're over there,_ he thought, closing his eyes. Their chakra signatures could be detected easily, indicating they were extremely close. _Well, I'd best get the ball rolling. _

He turned, making hand seals. "Fire Style: Great Dragon Flame Jutsu!"

As Itachi cried out, three Hiraishin Kunai flew past him.

The mighty flame dragon surged towards the trees, exploding and completely destroying six of the giant plants.

"Facing an opponent with the Hiraishin is indeed troublesome," Itachi noted, as he spun around.

Naruto stood there, with two of his clones.

One of the clones was grabbing onto Sasuke's arm, while the other had his hand resting on Sakura's shoulder.

"You teleported them out of safety in time." Itachi applauded. "Impressive, Naruto."

"Yeah, yeah, but now it's time to get down to business!" Naruto replied excitedly.

"Remember the plan, Naruto," Sasuke said quickly.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah!"

_They have a plan?_ Itachi felt some unusual excitement bubbling within him. He was eager to see what these talented trio could pull to defeat him. _Let's see what they've got. _

"Sasuke! Sakura-chan!" The blonde called. "Stand by!"

Itachi looked on as Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto surrounded him. The Uzumaki took the front, while his teammates stood facing Itachi's back.

_Some kind of formation?_ Itachi looked around him.

He expected a really, really dazzling attack - a spectacular team technique that would knock him off his feet.

So, he was really, really surprised as Naruto placed his hands in the Ram seal.

"Sexy Jutsu!"

* * *

_"Brother's weakness is... Anko-sensei!" _

_Naruto stared at Sasuke for a moment. "Whaaaaaaa?" _

_Sakura looked at Sasuke as well, curious over Itachi's relationship with the scary snake summoner. _

_"They are, well, you know..." Sasuke trailed off. _

_"Ohhh," Sakura got it immediately. _

_Naruto didn't, however. "What? What do you mean?" _

_Sasuke rolled his eyes. "They are in a relationship." He said slowly, to make sure his dense teammate understood. _

_Naruto frowned. "In a relationship? Itachi-sensei? And the scary snake lady? HAHAHAHA!" He burst out laughing, rolling around on the ground. _

_"What's so funny?" _

_"I didn't know Itachi-sensei's taste was so bad! Haha!" _

_Sasuke slapped a full palm onto his face. "She's actually not... that bad..." _

_"But what does this have to do with what we're doing now?" Sakura asked. _

_"I don't know," Sasuke said honestly. "Naruto just asked me if brother has a weakness. The only weakness I can think of is Anko. Once she... hehe... drops her pants, brother does anything." _

_Sakura looked away with a huff. "I didn't know Itachi-sensei was such a pervert." _

_"Every male is a natural pervert," Sasuke defended. Then his eyes lit up. "Ah! I know! I have the perfect plan!" _

_"Let's hear it!" _

_Sasuke grinned. "Alright, here it is. Naruto, what if you use your Sexy Jutsu to transform into Anko-sensei?" _

_Naruto slammed his right fist on his left palm in glee. "Hey, that might work! That'll distract Itachi-sensei enough, and then you guys can get the bells!" _

_It was Sakura's turn to palm her face. "This is the worst idea ever." _

_"But I don't know what's the size of her breasts and her ass and all that. I need to know if I'm using the Sexy Jutsu! Or do I just pick a size at random?" _

_"Hey, no worries, I've got that covered." _

_Naruto and Sakura stared at Sasuke suspiciously. _

_"Let's just say my brother doesn't have a habit of locking his room door..." A dirty smirk played on Sasuke's lips. "Even when Anko-sensei comes over." _

_Sakura had a mortified look on her face, while Naruto's eyes widened. _

_"That's why the size of her womanly parts won't be a problem. I've seen them like three times. It's a bit hard to observe them when they're thrashing around on the bed like wild animals, but y'know-" _

_Naruto punched Sasuke on the shoulder. "So you actually observed them, huh, Sasuke? I bet you dropped your pants there and then and just started to-" He was cut off, as Sakura landed a punch on the back of his head. _

_Sasuke blushed, looking away. _

_"Anyway, that's the plan. We'll surround brother and as Naruto distracts him with the Sexy Jutsu, we get the bells." He nodded to Sakura. "Let's do this, team!"  
_

* * *

Itachi gasped as Naruto transformed into Anko.

Sasuke looked away swiftly, not wanting to lose his composure. Itachi, on the other hand, had his eyes glued to the transformed Naruto. A second gasp escaped his mouth, and then blood starting running down his nose.

"Sakura! Now!" Sasuke yelled, charging towards Itachi and tackling him. His hand dug into his brother's pockets, retrieving two bells.

Sakura raced towards the Jonin, grabbing the last bell.

They didn't really have to worry though.

Itachi was still gawking at the naked form of Anko.

With a satisfied grin, Naruto deactivated the jutsu, transforming back into his regular self. Sasuke tossed him a bell, and he caught it.

"That worked," Sakura muttered in shock.

"Of course it did," Sasuke said with a smirk.

Itachi wiped the blood off his nose. _How embarrassing. _

"Fine, fine, you got me," he grumbled.

The team shared a laugh at his expense.

* * *

"Whut?"

"I'll repeat myself," Tsunade said exasperatedly. "I apologize for sending you on a mission so soon after your return to the village. But I think you are the most suited for this one..."

Naruto grinned. "Well? What's the mission? Bring it on Grandma!"

Shizune shifted uncomfortably beside Tsunade.

Itachi noticed this. _Something's wrong, _he immediately thought.

"Naruto," the Godaime said seriously. "This mission... is an S-Rank mission."

Itachi tensed. _S-Rank? _

Sasuke felt excitement bubbling within him. Sakura frowned at her master. An S-Rank mission for a team of Jonin and Chunin didn't seem very right.

"It is..." She continued. "... to rescue the Kazekage."

"The Kazekage?"

Tsunade sighed.

"Gaara Sabaku. The Fifth Kazekage of Suna."

Naruto gasped.

"Gaara's the... Gaara's the... Wait! Rescue?"

Tsunade shook her head, and Itachi could clearly make out the anger in her face. The Hokage looked up at the older Uchiha in the room, nodding towards him.

"The Akatsuki... have made their move."

Naruto frowned. "Wait... what?"

Itachi's eyes widened, understanding the meaning behind the village leader's words. _So... they've began their operation. _

"A member of the Akatsuki infiltrated Sunagakure hours ago," Tsunade explained, placing a mission scroll on her desk. "The Kazekage lured him out of the village, and proceeded to engage him in battle. However..."

Naruto's fists clenched. _Those Akatsuki bastards again... _

"... He lost," Tsunade finished. "And was captured by the Akatsuki member - for the One-Tailed Shukaku within him, most likely. Your mission will be to help the Sand track Gaara Sabaku down, and rescue him before they can extract his Tailed Beast."

Naruto shook with anger.

Sakura glanced at her friend worriedly.

Deciding to speak up, Sasuke stepped forward.

"Hokage-sama, what happens when someone has a Tailed Beast extracted from him?"

Tsunade paused for a moment, hesitating on her reply.

"He dies."

* * *

Team Itachi had started on their way through the Land of Fire towards the Land of Wind.

The plan would be to move to Sunagakure first, investigate on the direction Gaara had disappeared to, and then continue their pursuit from there.

The whole way, Naruto had said nothing. He simply pressed forward.

Frustrated with glancing every now and then at his unreadable expression, Sakura jumped up to join him, deciding to make conversation instead.

"Naruto, are you..."

"I'm fine, Sakura-chan."

Sakura blinked. Naruto had obviously stated his desire to remain silent.

However, she pretended not to know

"How about we go on a date after we're finished with this mission?" Sakura smiled radiantly at him, hoping that her offer would at least cheer him up a little bit.

Naruto did not reply for a few seconds, but eventually muttered that it would be nice if they could.

Sakura sighed softly to herself. It was evident that Naruto had to be left alone for awhile.

For the blonde Chunin, there was only one thing on his mind.

_We are coming to save you... Gaara! _

* * *

**Well, as I was saying - an illegally short chapter. :/ **

**In the next chapter, Team Itachi begins their pursuit of the Akatsuki. **

**Question of the Day: Without Kakashi's dog summons, how do you think the team will track down the Akatsuki? **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews. **


	7. Saving Kankuro: Sakura's Expertise

**I apologize for disappearing again, but finally I'm ready to dish out another chapter. **

**If you guys can, do check out _Legacy of Shadows_ by _beisenman1892_, a recent reviewer. It's basically a 'in the future' story about the next generation of Leaf shinobi. He's new to the whole Fanfiction thing and I like helping people out - so I would appreciate it if everyone could head over to his story, have a read, and give him some tips on how to improve. **

**I really liked everyone's guesses on how Team Itachi would track down the Akatsuki. In this chapter, we'll finally see how. **

_**beisenman1892**_**: Indeed, we all love pervy stuff! :D **

_**Mr. Haziq**_**: Hmm... ;) **

_**SonYukiGoku'sSister**_**: Cheers for the input. And I believe you can only summon one animal - unless of course, you're Sasuke fucking Uchiha with his snake and hawk summons. **

_**demonic hellfire**_**: I don't think the Sharingan can be used to track long-range targets, to be honest! **

_**TheOrangeStar802**_**: All Uchihas have to be perverts... I mean, look at their constant brooding. It's like they're trying to keep their personality a secret ;)**

_**danielle**_**: Thanks! :) **

_**jj**_**: A million thanks for the input. I also figured somebody would find my constant dialouge a little annoying, but well, it's the way I write. I'll definitely try to improve on that in the future. **

_**Raisuke Death**_**: Naruto hasn't fought Deidara before, unless of course, you mean Itachi, who scuffled with Deidara once in _Team Itachi_.**

_**Pyr00tje**_**: Pocky is his second weakness, maybe...? Hahaha.**

**Thanks to _beisenman1892, Jove99, Mr. Haziq, 15dragondream, SonYukiGoku'sSister, FrozenFlamingFire, Nta fanfic, demonic hellfire, TheOrangeStar802, danielle, AFlashofSilver, jj, Raisuke Death _and _Pyr00tje _for the reviews!**

* * *

"Chiyo-baasama, is there anything you can do?"

Baki looked on worriedly as Chiyo examined Kankuro - now stripped of his battle suit and war paint. The poison had heavily stung him, and he had been fading in and out of consciousness - all the while too weak to utter a word.

_What kind of ninja can do something like this...?_ Baki thought. _The Akatsuki... they are more formidable than I've thought. _

The Jonin had somehow managed to miraculously convince Chiyo, an old war veteran who had specialized in poisons and puppets, to take a look at Kankuro.

The granny stared at Kankuro closely. She knew familiarity when she saw it. _These poisons... there's no mistake... it's definitely... _

"Chiyo-baasama," Baki repeated, snapping Chiyo out of her thoughts.

"Oh, yes? Sorry," Chiyo apologized with a cheeky smile. "My old ears aren't very good for hearing these days."

"Is there anything you can do about Kankuro...?"

Chiyo sighed, and shook her head. "No... No, I'm afraid not. This poison... it's a very complicated kind, one that is too great for me to cure."

Baki frowned. _A poison too great for Chiyo-baasama? Who... who exactly are these Akatsuki bastards? _

"Unfortunately for the boy, he only has about two or three days left to live. The poison is going to destroy all his vital organs, and eventually reach his heart, stopping it from beating."

Baki's fists clenched and he gritted his teeth. "No... surely there is something we can do!"

Chiyo thought for a moment.

"Well, there is something, I suppose."

The hooded Jonin stared at the granny, prompting her to continue.

"There is one person who stands a chance of countering this poison. That brat from Konoha, the Hidden Leaf... Tsunade of the Sannin, regarded as the world's greatest living medical ninja."

Then, Chiyo shook her head in disappointment.

"However, it will take more than two days to arrive here in Suna from the Leaf. This boy here won't be able to make it till then."

Baki growled. "So we just sit here and wait for him to die?!"

Chiyo was unfazed by the sudden raise of the hooded ninja's voice, and instead proceeded to state what she thought.

"Yes, unfortunately."

* * *

"Halt!"

A Sand Jonin placed his hand in front of him, signalling for Team Itachi to stop in their tracks. Beyond the ninja was the gates into the Hidden Sand.

Itachi quickly explained himself. "We are a team from Konoha dispatched to assist in the Kazekage pursuit. Please, let us through."

The guard frowned, but stepped aside. Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura and Itachi raced into the gates.

At the Kazekage's residence, they were greeted by Baki, who led them into a room.

Said room seemed to be a mini hospital ward of sorts, with tubes and various medical tools strewn messily around the place. But what was more noticeable was the bed in the middle of the room - or the teen lying on it.

"Who's that?" Naruto blurted out.

"Kankuro."

Upon hearing the name, memories of fighting this particular puppeteer in the Chunin Exams came rushing back to Sasuke.

"Kankuro?" Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Oh, it's the guy who uses puppets. What happened to him?"

"Akatsuki," Baki replied angrily.

Naruto's eyes widened.

Itachi stepped forward. "Please, tell us more about this."

Baki nodded with a tired sigh. "Kankuro went in pursuit of the Akatsuki shinobi who took Gaara with a team of shinobi... From that team of seven, only two came back alive, including Kankuro here..."

"But they were poisoned. Badly," Itachi observed, walking towards the unconscious form of Kankuro, who had a pained expression on his face even in sleep.

"Yes..."

An old lady in a corner of the room walked forward. Itachi surveyed her face, and recognized her after a few seconds - Chiyo-baasama, one of the Honored Siblings of Suna.

_That explains why she's looking so annoyed, _he thought. _Chiyo-baasama fought against the Leaf in the Second Shinobi World War. We're allies now, but she still holds a grudge against us, apparently. _

"The boy has been affected by a complicated kind of poison," Chiyo said, casting a glance towards Kankuro. "I have an extensive knowledge of poisons, but even I can't solve the problem. If this keeps up he's going to die in two days, and that's the maximum."

"What?" Sasuke muttered. _I managed to beat him then, but he can't be that weak now. Who exactly are these Akatsuki people? __  
_

"Only Tsunade-hime... the Hokage of your village, can save him now. If there's anyone who stands a chance of counteracting this poison, it's that little Slug Princess," Chiyo spoke Tsunade's name with disgruntlement.

Sakura quickly stepped up. "Maybe I can help. I'm a medical ninja."

Chiyo laughed her off. "Sure you can."

Ignoring the old granny's mocking tone, Sakura took it as an invitation, and quickly went to work.

Pinning her hair up in a ponytail, she quickly barked out orders to the two medical assistants in the room. "You! I want you to get me a bowl of water, right now, and you over there, I want you to get me these herbs..."

Naruto watched in awe.

Itachi turned towards Baki, who noticed the gaze of the Konoha nin. The two Jonin glanced at each other, and Itachi gestured towards the door.

They exited the room.

"Have you sent anyone to chase them down?"

"Yes," Baki confirmed. "Six teams of four Jonin. Your mission will be to back them up, is that correct?"

"Indeed," Itachi said solemnly. "But I'm afraid none of those poor ninjas are going to return."

"Huh?"

"You've seen what they did to Kankuro-san," Itachi closed his eyes in contemplation. "And you told me they managed to easily dispose of five Jonin, as well as kidnap the Kazekage. In my opinion, it's a wrong move on your part. You'll only lose more of your men."

Baki growled. "You don't expect us to sit back here while our Kazekage is being whisked off, do you?"

Itachi smiled. "Of course not. It's an illogical thing to do, but anyone would have done the same under such circumstances. Anyway, they will do very well in buying some time for us on our side."

"What do you mean? Do you have a plan?"

His eyes flying open as he finished his thinking, Itachi walked away.

"I suppose you could say that."

Baki followed Itachi into the office of the Kazekage, which was unfortunately unoccupied. The Konoha nin stepped towards a large window, opening it. A rush of air came flying in.

"Please inform my squad that I'll be back in an hour," he said, with a polite smile. Baki agreed.

Itachi closed his eyes, and his entire body dispersed into a flock of crows. Baki watched as the nine crows flew out of the window and into the Suna air.

Within each of the crows' subconsciousness was Itachi Uchiha.

_Crow Scouting Jutsu! _

Each of the nine crows' pupils shifted into Sharingan eyes, and took off toward different directions.

* * *

"I'm ready," Sakura murmured, mostly to herself. "I'm going to start extracting the poison from his body now."

Chiyo frowned. _Can this pink-headed lass do what I cannot? _

"I need the both of you to hold him down," she instructed the assistants, who nodded and quickly went to work, pinning Kankuro to the bed. "This might hurt just a little."

She focused chakra onto her hands, and soon there was a green blob in her right hand.

Sakura positioned her hand just above Kankuro's chest, where a small incision had been made earlier, by her with a chakra scalpel.

Without hesitation, she pushed her chakra into the green blob, and a part of it turned into fluid, seeping through the incision into Kankuro's body.

"Argh!"

Kankuro started struggling.

"Down!" Sakura shrieked at the assistants, who quickly used all their strength to continue pinning the puppeteer down.

"Raaaarghhh!"

Sakura ignored the cries of pain, instead concentrating on what she was doing. Slowly, she drew the fluid out with chakra once again. This time, accompanied by the green fluid she had pushed into Kankuro earlier, was purple-colored liquid - the poison.

Satisfied, the pinkette moved her hand over to the bowl of water, and the green blob with the poison inside it splashed into the water.

Seeing the assistants start to relax, Sakura quickly shouted at them to continue their work. With fearful looks in their eyes, they did, placing their hands over Kankuro's arms and legs.

"Sakura can be pretty intimidating sometimes," Sasuke explained, as Chiyo grunted in displeasure at how the medical nin was ordering her assistants around.

Another green blob appeared in Sakura's hand, and she repeated the process of extracting the poison.

Kankuro screamed in pain again, but this time, his cries were a little softer.

Naruto grinned. "It's working."

Sasuke smirked. "Yeah."

Minutes passed, and soon Sakura let out a sigh of relief, wiping the sweat from her brow. Her hair came undone, back to their usual style. "It's done. He's safe, and he should be back to full health within a week."

Chiyo glanced apprehensively at Sakura. "How... how did you do that?"

"What...?"

"Extract the poison."

"Oh," Sakura smiled sheepishly. "Well, my master is the great Tsunade-sama. She taught me everything she knew, so I guess I managed to master a technique or two."

"Your master is... Tsunade-hime?" Chiyo questioned in surprise. "I didn't know she still took in disciples. How interesting." As she spoke, the granny was deep in thought.

_The way she extracted the poison... she did it within an hour. She did something I was unable to do in an hour! And her beauty... she reminds me of a mini Tsunade, _Chiyo then felt a mischievous smile finding it's way to her lips. _One of the only differences is their bust. What a difference. Hahahaha! _

Sakura excused herself from the room, needing to go somewhere, which Naruto assumed was the toilet.

"Well, I think we're ready to head out now," Sasuke stretched.

"In a moment."

Sasuke turned to the door, as Baki stepped in. "Eh?"

"Itachi-san went to search out the enemy," said the Sand Jonin. "He'll be back in a few minutes."

Sasuke frowned, but said nothing.

"You... you... gotta be careful... of 'em..."

Kankuro had awoken.

One of the assistants quickly laid him down. "Kankuro-sama, you need to rest!"

"Fuck that," he swore, brushing the assistant off. "I can't... rest... when my brother's... out there... kidnapped..."

"Don't worry!"

Naruto balled his right hand into a fist.

"I'm definitely going to bring Gaara back... Believe it!"

Seeing his determination, Kankuro allowed a small smile to creep onto his face. "I believe it. But... still, I gotta... warn you about them."

Sasuke nodded. "We'll need every information we can."

Kankuro tried to sit up, but eventually needed the help of the assistants. "Thanks... Anyway, as I was saying... the guy who... attacked Gaara... he used bombs... clay explosives. I believe... his name was...?"

"Deidara," Baki provided. "He's a former ninja from Iwagakure, the Hidden Stone, and he uses explosives in battle."

"Yeah... and the guy... his partner... was... Sasori... of the Red Sand..."

Naruto shot Kankuro a questioning look. "Huh? Who?"

Baki gasped in realization, while Chiyo didn't look exactly stumped, having already figured it out earlier. "S-Sasori of the Red Sand? He left the village years ago! Why is he...?"

Kankuro felt faint, and quickly lied down. "All I know is... if you wanna... fight them... you gotta be... really, really strong..."

Sasuke smirked. "That's something we all are."

"Yeah! We are going to kick some Akatsuki ass and bring your brother back!" Naruto added, punching the air.

Smiling, Kankuro slipped back into unconsciousness.

"Kankuro-sama needs to rest," the assistants said quickly, ushering everyone out of the room.

Sakura returned at this point in time. Her left hand was dug into her pockets, and her other hand presented a vial of green liquid.

"I made these," she smiled. "I've conjured up an antidote. If the enemy tries to inflict us with the poison he used against Kankuro-san, we just have to drink this up, and we'll be fine."

Chiyo resisted a gasp. _She made an antidote too...? Within a few minutes...? _

From her pockets, Sakura produced eight more vials. "These might come in handy for later."

Sasuke grinned. "Great thinking, Sakura."

* * *

"So, what are you going to do after we get back to the hideout, my man?"

"The sealing."

"I mean, after that, hm."

"Sleep."

"Wow, really? You, my man, sleeping?"

"No."

"Lame, hm," Deidara retorted. Sasori never slept. That was one certain fact he knew about his Akatsuki partner. Well, perhaps one or two hours per month.

Sasori looked up into the air. A crow was flying high up above. "Say, Deidara... That crow hasn't been cawing much, has he?"

Before Deidara could reply, a kunai flew past his face. The papery feel of an explosive tag brushed across his cheek.

The blonde bomber leaped into the air, as did Sasori, as the kunai - now revealed to be attached with an explosive tag, exploded.

"You should watch where you're aiming, hm," Deidara smirked, as his clay bird was thrown forward from the explosion. "You could end up hurting your beloved Kazekage."

A team of four Suna shinobi stared in surprise at the clay bird, quickly noticing Gaara in it's talons. "Kazekage-sama!"

"Let's take care of these four loons before we get back! I needa flex my muscles a bit before the sealing, hm!"

Sasori sighed. "Whatever..."

He looked up into the sky, but the crow had flown out of sight.

Deidara smirked evilly, as he dug his hand into his bag of clay. He grunted in annoyance. "I only have a bit of clay left..."

Sasori made what appeared to be a poor attempt at a chuckle. "I told you to bring more clay."

"Don't rub it in, my man..."

Deidara withdrew his hand.

"I can still work with this bit of clay-"

The Suna squad charged towards the bomber. "What are you blabbering about, you feminine-looking bastard? Give our Kazekage back!"

"Feminine-looking?" Deidara growled. "I'll show you Suna fuckers who's feminine!"

Sasori looked to the side. "Oh, boy."

* * *

Tsunade flipped through the papers, keen on finding out if she'd won that lottery she'd bet on.

Though, she would not, obviously.

Still, she wanted to find out. It was an everyday routine, and at this time every day, she would be checking the papers for the bet she'd placed.

And when she got to the page - lo and behold, she had won.

Tsunade of the Sannin, the Legendary Sucker, had won a bet.

The Hokage frowned, tossing the paper aside.

This couldn't be good news.

Deciding to cash in on her prize later, Tsunade waited patiently.

A knock on the door soon came, and Shizune entered.

Tsunade nodded at her assistant.

"Is Team Kakashi on a mission?"

Shizune shook her head immediately. It was amazing how fantastic her memory was, that she could remember which ninja was on a mission, and which ninja wasn't. Tsunade had always marveled a little at that.

"No, they aren't. They just returned from a B-Rank one two days ago."

"Brilliant," Tsunade smiled. "I want the entire Team Kakashi here. Now."

* * *

**And we're done. I liked writing this chapter, and hopefully every reader of this liked reading it too. **

**With some reviewers guessing that the Sharingan can be used to track like the Byakugan... well, I'll let some of the readers answer it themselves.**

_**Question of the Day: Can the Sharingan track long-range targets like the Byakugan? **_**  
**

**I've also noticed I have two reviewers, _FrozenFlamingFire_ and _demonic hellfire_. So, just for fun... **

_**Question of the Day II: Would you rather get hit with frozen flaming fire or demonic hell fire? **_

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews. **


	8. The Land of Rivers: Kisame Strikes

**Dishing out a new chapter because I'm on a roll. :D **

**The arc is a little boring, at least for me, so far, but the fun part comes later. **

_**demonic hellfire**_**: Burns the soul indeed haha :) **

_**Pyr00tje**_**: It IS going to be a NaruSaku story :D **

**_GreyJedi1_: I don't think Deidara looks like a girl AT ALL. But a lot of people think so, so I just had to throw that little joke in there.  
**

_**AFlashofSilver**_**: Blue? Hahaha :P **

**Thanks to _demonic hellfire, Pyr00tje, S.R.457, GreyJedi1, Fernlight, beisenman1892, 15dragondream_ and _AFlashofSilver_ for the reviews!**

* * *

Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura waited patiently at the gates of Suna.

Or impatiently, in Naruto's case. The blonde-haired Chunin was pacing up and down. "What's taking Itachi-sensei so long?" He would blurt out every few minutes.

Itachi soon arrived. "Hey guys. I'm back."

"Where did you go?" Sasuke questioned.

"I went to track them down," was the reply. "It appears they're heading towards the Land of Rivers. We have to head out now."

"Wait!"

Team Itachi looked back, to see a familiar face rushing over. Baki was trailing behind.

"I want to go with you..."

Sakura recognized the female immediately. "Temari-san?"

Temari had an angered expression in her eyes. "I want to go with you and find these Akatsuki assholes, and beat them up until they die for daring to touch my brother!"

"Temari, calm down!" Baki yelled, as he caught up. "I told you, you are going nowhere. You are to stay here on guard duty. Let the Leaf handle this."

"No!" Temari shrieked. "This is my brother we're talking about!"

"Calm down, Temari," Baki sighed. "You have to stay here."

Naruto stepped forward. "Um... maybe we should let her come along. It's her brother, after all-"

Baki silenced him with an annoyed glare. "You don't know anything, kid. If somehow other villages find out our Kazekage is missing, they might try to use this opportunity to attack. If we field every single one of our Jonin out there, looking for Gaara and another village decides to attack..."

Itachi nodded. "That makes sense." He fixed Temari with an assuring smile. "Please don't worry, Temari-san. We will bring your brother back, safe and sound."

The Wind Style user opened her mouth, wanting to say something in protest, but could find no argument. She grunted in displeasure.

"Well, with that all cleared up, I think we're ready to leave," Sasuke said, tugging at Itachi's sleeve. He was tired of waiting around.

"Right," Itachi agreed.

Baki bowed. "We can't thank Konoha enough. I hope you can succeed."

Naruto made a victory sign. "We will definitely bring Gaara back! Believe it!"

And with that, Team Itachi set off, sprinting towards their destination in the Land of Rivers.

Baki remained in his spot, looking at the backs of the four Leaf shinobi until they ran out of sight.

_Somehow, that idiotic blonde's positiveness is rather convincing... Now I know... they will succeed,_ Baki thought, with a slight smile on his face. _Return to us soon... Gaara... _

* * *

"Awwwright! We're going on an S-Rank mission this time!"

Kakashi could only perform his signature eye-smile at Kiba's enthusiasm. "Yep. We are going to back up Team Itachi on their Kazekage rescue mission."

Hinata bit her lip. "T-That means..."

Kakashi looked at her. "Yes, that means you three are all going to see Naruto again, for the first time in three years."

"Ahh!" Hinata gasped, feeling herself starting to faint.

Kiba snapped her out of it, punching her playfully in the shoulder. "Hehe... someone's a little too excited!"

"K-Kiba-kun," she muttered in protest, blushing.

In the corner of the gates, Shino said nothing. He simply leaned against the wall, hands in his pockets as usual. His entire body was almost covered now, and the only thing people could really see was his sunglasses.

Kiba was also now sporting a new jacket, with this one no longer with a hood covering the back of his head. He leaped onto his beloved partner, Akamaru, who was now way bigger than before.

Hinata had also undergone visible changes thanks to puberty, and the most noticeable was her hair, now kept long and extending towards the area just above her waist.

Also, her friends, especially the perverted Kiba, had noticed how her chest had considerably swelled with puberty. Every time he thought about it, the Inuzuka boy giggled uncontrollably at his own perverted thoughts.

"Alright, I think we're ready to head out."

The trio of Chunin behind Kakashi responded. "Yes, sir."

"Let's go."

Team Kakashi took off, towards the Hidden Sand.

* * *

"We're here, hm."

Sasori rolled his eyes. "Thank you for the excellent observation, Deidara."

Smirking, Deidara did a hand seal.

The giant boulder in front of them moved back, and then to the side, allowing entrance into a cave beyond.

Deidara leaped off his clay bird, just as it disappeared, and caught Gaara. He quickly followed after Sasori, who had entered the cave.

"You're late."

"We got held up," Deidara replied, dragging the unconscious Kazekage as he stepped in.

A shadowy silhouette stood in the middle of it. The only noticeable trait of the see-through figure was his rippled, purple eyes.

"Fair enough," he replied. His deep voice would have struck fear into most strangers, but Deidara and Sasori had grown accustomed to their leader's nature. "We shall begin the sealing now."

Behind the strange, shadowy figure was a gigantic statue, with it's wrists bound together with what appeared to be a handcuff. Deidara and Sasori took their places on one finger each.

Simultaneously, on the rest of the unoccupied figures, other shadowy figures flickered to life.

"Sealing Jutsu!"

Deidara sighed. _Another three days, stuck like a statue, hm. This sucks balls. _

"Nine Phantom Dragons!"

He closed his eyes, making a hand seal. _Well, better get this done with as quickly as I can. _

* * *

"Sakura-chan, wake up."

Sakura's eyes fluttered open.

"Sakura-chan..."

A hand was placed on her arm now, nudging her awake.

"Naruto," she yawned. "Good morning."

Naruto whispered a half-hearted good morning in reply. Sakura looked into the anxious eyes of her teammate. He was worried. Indeed, it had been a day since they set off from Suna.

He offered a hand to Sakura, pulling her up. "Itachi-sensei is waking Sasuke up," he explained. "You should go and wash up. We are heading out in fifteen minutes."

Sakura nodded, giving Naruto one last worried glance, before turning and walking towards the nearby river.

Soon, the team were ready.

"They are probably trying to seal the Shukaku inside Gaara now," Itachi informed his squad, as they started their jumps through the trees. "That isn't something that can be done in an instant. It's going to take at least two days, even for skilled users of Sealing Jutsu."

"So, you're saying we can make it in time?" Naruto asked.

"Yes," Itachi confirmed. "The Land of Rivers is minutes away. But even if we get there in time to stop the sealing... we'll still have to fight the Akatsuki if we want to get Gaara back. Prepare yourselves for a tough battle."

Naruto rested his hand on the hilt of a Hiraishin Kunai in his belt. "It's time to see what these Akatsuki guys can do."

Sakura leaped ahead. "Hey... Itachi-sensei..."

Itachi turned to her. "Yes, Sakura?"

"Naruto... he's the same as Gaara... right?"

The Jonin did not answer for a moment, but hesitated before nodding. "Yes... yes, he is. He's a Jinchuriki."

Sakura looked back. Sasuke and Naruto were now side by side, talking.

"Then... will the Akatsuki target him too?"

Itachi raised an eyebrow at her question. He wasn't expecting such a question. The worry in Sakura's tone could be easily detected. Itachi simply smiled at his former student.

"Yes... But when they do come, we'll protect him."

"But they tried to protect Gaara too. Didn't they?"

Itachi struggled to find a reply to that.

Therefore, he decided not to, and instead noted that they were now at their destination, the Land of Rivers.

An exclamation of "look" prompted Itachi and Sakura to turn, their gaze following Sasuke's finger. Sakura gasped.

The bloodied body of a ninja in the Jonin garb of Sunagakure laid there. Nearby was three forehead protectors of Suna, with drops of blood on them.

As Team Itachi walked over, they quickly saw dried-up blood splattered everywhere. Sakura gasped again, as they discovered a few solitary limbs thrown about. It was a gruesome sight.

What they failed to notice, however, was the water in the river beside them.

A shark formed from water had rose, and rocketed towards the Leaf shinobi.

"Water Style: Water Shark Bomb Jutsu!"

* * *

"Stop there."

Kakashi did as told, and so did the rest of his team. Temari walked up to them.

"Oh, it's just you..."

"We're here to back Itachi and his team up in their mission," Kakashi declared. "Which way did they go?"

Temari pointed in a certain direction, a mixture of frustration and boredom evident on her face. "They left a day ago. They're headed towards the Land of Rivers."

"Roger," Kakashi gave Temari his most polite eye-smile, before turning. "Let's go."

* * *

"Water Style: Water Shark Bomb Jutsu!"

Sasuke reacted quickly, channeling Lightning chakra into his fists as he slammed his fist on the ground.

"Lightning Style: Lightning Barrier!"

A blue, electrically-charged barrier was formed, defending the four Konoha nin from the water shark bomb.

"That's a handy technique you have there... Heheh..."

Itachi turned his head slightly.

A familiar man, dressed in Akatsuki robes, was there, giving them a wicked smile. It was a bone-chilling smile - an unpleasant one that could strike fear into anybody.

And when the tall man revealed his row of particularly sharp teeth, it just made him look scarier.

"Kisame Hoshigaki..." Itachi uttered the man's name.

"You!" Naruto growled. "You're the Water Style shark guy who attacked me that time!"

"Ooh..." Kisame smirked. "You still remember, huh, brat...?"

"I guess we've gotta take care of this guy first before we move on to Gaara," Sasuke glared at Kisame, as he assumed a taijutsu posture.

Itachi closed his eyes, and to Kisame's bafflement, a smile crept onto his lips. "Just as I planned... Kisame."

Kisame frowned, as he brandished his weapon, the Samehada. "Just as you planned...?"

"Sending you out to fight us like this... it's obviously a panic move, trying to buy time as you Akatsuki guys seal the One-Tail," Itachi said, emitting a confident tone. "That proves that your hideout is near, and it will probably narrow our search. Thanks."

Sasuke could only smile.

If Kisame was taken aback by Itachi's clever analysis, he didn't show it. "By the time I've done with you, Itachi-san, you won't be able to even crawl your way to our hideout."

"Bold words..." Itachi acknowledged. "But I don't think you're even the real Kisame Hoshigaki, are you?"

At these words, Kisame tensed.

"Jackpot."

Not bothering to say anything more, Kisame charged.

Itachi activated his Sharingan. _Whatever it is, we have to clean up here as quickly as we can. _

Naruto, wielding his Hiraishin Kunai, made the first move, throwing the weapon towards Kisame.

Just as the shark-like man was about to knock it away, Naruto reappeared beside it, grabbing onto the kunai with his left hand. On his right hand was a fully-charged Rasengan that he thrust forward.

"Rasengan!"

He slammed the blue sphere into the blue-skinned shinobi's abdomen.

Kisame dissolved into water.

"Naruto!" Itachi yelled.

Turning, Naruto saw Kisame behind him, performing hand seals. Before he could get away, he felt the water from the river rushing towards him, forming a sphere with him in the middle.

"Water Prison Jutsu!"

Naruto tried to escape, but he already knew he couldn't.

"Dammit!"

Another Kisame appeared, this one jumping out from underneath the river. "Water Style: Super Shark Bomb Jutsu!"

A water shark was formed again. This time, however, it was a much, much bigger shark.

The giant creature flew towards Itachi, Sasuke and Sakura.

Sasuke acted quickly, as the Chidori rumbled in his hand.

"Chidori True Spear!"

He stretched his arm forward, and the Chidori lengthened into an explosive lightning spear, colliding with the gigantic shark. It resulted in a deafening explosion, cancelling out either technique.

Smoke came into the battle ground, and it refused to clear. Kisame squinted his eyes, ready to make an attacking move into the blinding black fog.

"Take this!"

He looked down, to see an arm with a clenched fist emerging from the ground. Kisame jumped back, as Sakura emerged from underground.

"Water Style: Exploding Water Shock Wave!"

Sakura backed away as Kisame spat out a large volume of water, forming it into a wave and willing it to go forth.

The wave crashed into Sakura, and she was soon caught in it.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted. He struggled to release himself from his prison again, but it was futile.

The wave raged towards Itachi and Sasuke, with Sakura being tossed around within it. Naruto could see that she would be running out of breath soon enough.

Suddenly, a dragon formed from the earth rose up from the ground, invading the wave and catching Sakura in it's mouth. The dragon tunneled back underground, as Itachi utilized his Water-natured chakra to stop the wave.

In his water prison, Naruto glared hard as the battle unfolded. He hated that he couldn't do anything because he was stuck in this stupid prison.

Then, he spotted a familiar pink head poking out of the ground behind the Kisame holding him captive.

He grinned as Sakura arose fully. The Kisame clone turned his head, only to receive a good punch that sent him flying back, eventually dissolving into water.

The water prison was cancelled, and Naruto patted Sakura's back as he was set free. "Good job, Sakura-chan."

"Fire Style: Great Dragon Flame Jutsu!"

Sasuke and Itachi both used their techniques simultaneously, with their combined effort enough to form a gigantic flame dragon that could have towered over Kisame's earlier Super Shark Bomb.

The dragon roared, and flew down towards Kisame.

"That'll finish you," Naruto muttered, as the technique assaulted it's target.

"I think not..."

Naruto was quick to react, turning around with his Hiraishin Kunai at the ready.

The short three-pronged weapon was easily knocked off his hand by the much bigger Samehada.

Kisame swiped his bandaged blade again, but Naruto quickly jumped away.

Sakura tried to punch him in the jaw, but was kicked away.

"You can't get rid of me that easily," the Akatsuki man hissed, as Itachi and Sasuke ran over. "Water Style-"

"Chidori Sharp Spear!"

Kisame dodged quickly, his focus on using his technique gone as the lightning spear edged towards him.

A Hiraishin Kunai flew past his face, and a moment later Naruto was behind him, gripping onto the thrown kunai and stabbing it through his back with a yell.

"Not a clone," Naruto smirked, as he recognized the smell of blood invading the air.

"How did you..." Kisame snarled. "... get there so fast?"

Naruto refused to reply, instead yelling out to his comrades. "Now! Kill him!"

Itachi nodded, charging over with his katana now wielded. Kisame shook Naruto off quickly and attempted to move. The kunai embedded in his back didn't help though, and Itachi had soon punctured his heart with his weapon.

Samehada was dropped, and Kisame gasped in pain.

* * *

**Done! It's not one of the best fight scenes I've ever written, but I definitely put some form of effort into this. Do leave a review to tell me what you thought of the chapter.**

**Question of the Day: Lemons - yay or nay? **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews. **


	9. Clone vs Clone: The Five Seal Barrier

**Hello guys, I'm back with another chapter. **

**Don't think I'm throwing in lemons for this story just because of that QotD. It was just a random question because I feel awkward writing lemons, however much I would like to have the skill to write them. I also know it could be uncomfortable for some readers, so yeah, I would rather not. **

**Still, it was interesting reading all of your brilliant responses as usual. **

**Also, regarding the questions about our dear Kin, I will definitely look to throw her back into this story sometime in the future. The question is, I don't know how! Leave your suggestions, guys! **

_**beisenman1892**_**: Hahaha, love your review. Does Gaara die? Read on to find out ;) **

_**demonic hellfire**_**: I like how you specifically typed 'Kisame' instead of Kisame. Clever little reader. **

_**AFlashofSilver**_**: Thanks! I didn't think it was too impressive of a fight scene myself and I'm glad someone else thinks otherwise. **

_**Mr. Haziq**_**: A lemon is basically a sex scene in writing slang. If I'm writing a lemon, it means I'm writing a sex scene, like a porno, except it's in words. **

_**Raisuke Death**_**: I don't get your review, but I have to correct you because it's Killer of thy Cookies... not Kookies :P **

_**Lin**_**: Ah, the return of your reviews - always love reading them. Hahaha. I hope moving goes well for you, and I look forward to your reviews again once you're done settling in. **

**Thanks to _Jove99, GreyJedi1, Nta fanfic, Eternal Dagger Sailor Krypton, battle neurosis, beisenman1892, demonic hellfire, AFlashofSilver, FrozenFlamingFire, Arch The Ripper, Mr. Haziq, 15dragondream, akasukifangirl, Raisuke Death, Lin _and _Mr. Lionheart_ for the reviews!**

* * *

"Ahhh... Argh..."

Itachi forcefully withdrew his blade from Kisame's heart, and the dying man fell forward.

"You..." He heaved.

Naruto walked over, taking out his Hiraishin Kunai from Kisame's back, making the shark-like shinobi cry out in pain again.

"It's over for you," the son of the Fourth said coldly.

To Naruto's surprise and anger, Kisame started laughing.

"You all... are skilled... indeed... but... hahaha..."

Sasuke and Sakura raced over, as Kisame began morphing. Itachi frowned, as Kisame fully transformed into a different shinobi - yet still in the attire of the Akatsuki.

"I knew it... It wasn't the real one," Itachi muttered, keeping his katana. "Anyhow... there is no way the real Kisame Hoshigaki would have been defeated so easily."

Sakura stared at the dead man. His body bore the wounds Kisame had suffered in the battle. "What... what is this? It's definitely not a clone..."

"The Impersonation Jutsu," Itachi replied grimly. "This man was used to impersonate Kisame Hoshigaki... a shape-shifting technique."

Naruto glared into the distance. "But he could use his jutsu..."

Itachi kept his gaze focused on the man. "Kisame Hoshigaki allocated a portion of his chakra to this guy. With the Impersonation Jutsu, you can use the one whom you impersonate's jutsu and techniques... even Kekkei Genkai. But once that chakra is gone, the user of this jutsu eventually..."

"... dies," Sasuke finished. "Brutal."

"Indeed," his brother agreed. "But we can't waste another second. Let's go."

Clenching his fists, Naruto didn't move, though his teammates did. Sakura stopped, looking back as her friend glared down at the dead user of the Impersonation Jutsu.

"Naruto...?"

Naruto smashed his fists together, before turning and running in the direction if Itachi and Sasuke. "Let's go, Sakura-chan."

Sakura's worried gaze fixed itself on the blonde's back as he ran past.

"Naruto..."

* * *

"It seems the Impersonation Jutsu has failed."

"Indeed, Kisame."

Deidara's eyes opened. "Let's not bother about those brats. When we're done with the sealing I'll finish them off, hm."

"Brats?" The projection of Kisame snorted. "Deidara-chan, you're only three or four years older than them."

"Shut up, Kisame!" Deidara snapped.

"The Kyuubi is with them too," Kisame explained. "The Kyuubi is supposed to be my target."

"And mine!"

"Shut up, Tobi."

Deidara glared at Kisame - well, his projection, anyway. "Do you think I care whose target is whose, hm? If I say I'm taking care of the Kyuubi, I'm taking care of the Kyuubi!"

"Shut up, both of you, and concentrate on the sealing. We can talk about this after we are finished," the leader commanded, irritation present in his tone of voice.

Both Akatsuki members obeyed their orders, although Deidara still seemed annoyed.

"We will not be able to finish this in time. It has only been a day, but they are already near our hideout."

The leader considered this. "Then, what do you suggest, Kakuzu?"

"We stop the sealing for now. After Deidara and Sasori take care of the intruders, they move the Jinchuriki to another hideout of ours unseen. No one will track them down this way, and we can seal the One-Tail in peace."

The projection beside Kakuzu's broke his silence. "Eh, Kakuzu, you shut the fuck up. You just wanna get that target we've been hunting down for that stupid bounty of yours!"

"Be quiet, Hidan."

The leader mulled over Kakuzu's words.

"Kakuzu does make sense," he finally said. "It won't take them more than a day to discover the hideout, seeing as they have someone like Itachi Uchiha within their ranks. Sasori, do you think both you and Deidara can handle Itachi Uchiha and the Kyuubi?"

Sasori hesitated, but finally nodded.

"Excellent. Then we shall stop here."

The Sealing Jutsu stopped, and Gaara fell back to the ground, taking in short breaths.

"Good luck... Deidara, Sasori."

One by one, the astral projections vanished, and with them, the gigantic statue.

Deidara took a seat. "Guess we'll be waiting for now, huh, Sasori, my man?"

* * *

Sasuke walked out of the bushes, looking around with his Sharingan activated.

Searching for a good thirty minutes, he finally found it. With his dojutsu, he could spot chakra presences not far away - which didn't seem to resemble the chakra of his teammates.

Excitedly, Sasuke ran towards the direction of the detected chakra.

"Sasuke here," he spoke into his wireless radio. "Think I've got something."

Sakura's reply came a moment later, a simple one. "Where are you?"

Sasuke gave his location, as he stopped at his destination.

In front of the Uchiha was a giant boulder, with a tag placed on it. Beyond the boulder, with his Sharingan, Sasuke could see two human beings - or their chakra, at least.

_A Five Seal Barrier,_ Sasuke observed.

Seconds later, the rest of Team Itachi arrived. The team's captain inspected the boulder.

"Looks like we'll have to spend some time removing this thing," Itachi frowned.

Sakura brought her fists up. "No problem. I'll just demolish this boulder and we can proceed!"

"No," Itachi said quickly. "It's not just a boulder. You can't see it, but there's a barrier here... A Five Seal Barrier. No matter how much strength you put into punching this rock, it'll be useless. We'll have to take care of the barrier first."

Naruto looked at Itachi. "What's a Five Seal Barrier?"

"The Five Seal Barrier is a type of Barrier Ninjutsu," a familiar voice explained, footsteps approaching. "There are five seal tags hidden around the nearby area, including the one you see up there on that boulder."

The team turned, to see Team Kakashi walking towards them. Kakashi looked up at the seal on the boulder. "To remove this barrier, each of these five seal tags will have to be taken off simultaneously."

"Kakashi-sensei," Sasuke smiled, acknowledging his tutor.

"Hey guys," Naruto couldn't resist a grin.

Hinata gasped. "N-Naruto-kun!"

"Hey, Naruto!" Kiba yelled, running over and slapping his friend on the back. "Good to see you, man!"

"Naruto," Shino nodded.

"You haven't changed a bit, Kiba," Naruto teased, bro-fisting the Inuzuka. "But woah... Akamaru certainly have."

"What're you talking about? Akamaru hasn't changed at all!" Kiba laughed. Naruto stared at the huge dog.

Akamaru barked in agreement with his human partner. "Arf!"

"Hey Hinata," Naruto waved. The Hyuga girl could only manage a small, slightly nervous but delighted smile. "And... uh... Shino?"

The hooded Aburame nodded again. "I'm glad you recognized me, Naruto."

"While I would hate to ruin the happy reunion and all, we have to make this quick. The Kazekage is in danger, and we can't waste any more time," Kakashi said seriously. Then, he eye-smiled. "Oh, and yo, Naruto."

Itachi chuckled. "Well, I think we should get going with finding these seal tags."

Everyone turned to Hinata expectantly.

The heiress blushed, disliking the attention already. She placed her hands together, forming the seal needed.

"Byakugan!"

As she felt her veins bulging, confirming the activation of her dojutsu, as well as her enhancing vision, Hinata immediately went to work.

She quickly gave out directions to four different locations.

"Alright," Naruto made no attempt to mask the eagerness in his voice. "Let's go to those places and get this barrier off!"

"Patience, Naruto," Kakashi said, his hand going into one of the pockets on his Jonin vest. "Team Kakashi will handle these seal tags. You guys sit tight over here until we give you the go-ahead to remove the tag up there."

"Sounds good," Itachi agreed, bringing out four wireless radios from one of his pockets on his Jonin vest. He tapped the one on his ear. "All these wireless radios are connected. We can use them to communicate."

"Alright," Kakashi took the miniature device. "Let's work out who goes where. I'll be heading to the cliff. Kiba will go to the northeast forest. For Hinata, it'll be the northern field. Shino, I leave the river located at the southeast to you."

"Roger."

"Spread!"

At the command, Team Kakashi separated.

"So..." Sakura looked at Itachi. "... now what?"

He looked at the boulder again, casting one more glance at the seal tag.

"We wait."

* * *

Kakashi looked down the cliff, before pushing chakra into his feet.

Slowly, he defied gravity, walking down the steep cliff. He soon spotted a seal tag.

The masked Jonin spoke into his communicator.

"Kakashi here. I've found the tag."

Kiba grinned, looking at the trunk of the tree he was leaning on. Present on the trunk was a tag. "This is Kiba. Found mine too."

Standing in front of a semi circle-shaped boulder, Hinata smiled in satisfaction. "Hello, this is Hinata. I've found the seal tag."

"And I've found a tag too," Shino's voice came.

"Brilliant. Are you ready, Itachi?"

Itachi jumped onto the giant boulder. "Yes, and I'm ready."

"Let's do this. On the count of three, we shall all peel off our tags."

Shino placed his hand on the tag he'd found, as Kakashi started counting down.

"One..."

Kiba reached out for his tag.

"Two..."

Naruto watched on in anticipation.

"Three!"

Itachi ripped the tag off. "Sakura, now!"

He jumped off the boulder, tearing the tag into half and dropping it as Sakura charged forward, her fist raised.

"Haaaa... Chaaaa!"

With every ounce of her chakra-enhanced strength, Sakura slammed her fist into the boulder. Naruto and Sasuke covered their ears, as a boom followed. Cracks quickly gathered on the surface of the giant boulder, and eventually, it shattered into pieces.

The team rushed into the hideout.

"Welcome..."

* * *

Kakashi listened intently. Through Itachi's wireless radio, he could faintly hear conversation. Soon, he could hear no more. Itachi had disconnected the radio, probably to focus on his upcoming battle.

"Alright, Team Kakashi, let's-"

From the surface of the cliff, an identical copy of him sprung up. Kakashi frowned.

His copy reached out, grabbing onto Kakashi's arm and trying to pull him off. However, he stuck, thanks to the chakra in his feet.

_Huh?_ Kakashi stared, but his thoughts were cut off as his clone punched him in the face. "Hey, some trouble on my side. A clone of me just appeared and attacked. I think it's some kind of defense measurement."

"Same here," Shino noted. His clone raised his arms, and bugs flew towards Shino. _They've even cloned my Kikaichu... _

Hinata locked eyes with her copy. "I think... we will have to defeat them before we go anywhere else..."

"It'll be easy for me," Kiba boasted with a smirk on his face. "My clone won't be able to match me."

"Don't speak so soon," Kakashi warned, as he stopped the chakra going to his feet, resulting in him slipping down towards his clone, and slammed an outstretched foot into the copy's face. The two masked men fell further down the cliff.

"I'm not being overconfident or anything," Kiba replied. "But their cloning technique... heh."

Kiba's copy used the Tunneling Fang, rushing towards Kiba.

Akamaru performed a Tunneling Fang of his own, and the dog knocked the Kiba copy away.

"They didn't clone my partner! Let's go, Akamaru!" Kiba yelled, hopping onto the over-sized dog.

"Arf!" He agreed with a bark, scampering towards the Kiba copy.

Hinata's eyes widened and she smiled. "So, they only copied you, because you were the one who tore the tag off..."

"Exactly! So this clone of mine will only be half as skilled as me! I'll crush him!"

"I can't say the same for the rest of us, unfortunately..." Kakashi did a back-flip in mid-air, landing a kick on his clone's chin. "Shino, have they cloned your bugs?"

"Yes," Shino spoke, raising his arms like his clone and calling forth his bugs.

Kikaichu battled against Kikaichu.

"This is going to be a very troublesome fight," Kakashi muttered, as he pushed chakra into his feet again, landing safely on the ground. His clone did the same.

The two lookalikes glared at each other with their single eyes, before both got out a kunai.

Kakashi poured Lightning chakra into his, and saw that his copy was doing exactly the same.

They rushed towards each other, and Kakashi made a sudden movement, a Raikiri forming in his hand instead of thrusting the chakra-infused kunai forward, confident that it would catch his clone off-guard.

However, the clone made the same moves. Kakashi jumped over his copy, and tried to use the Raikiri again, this time on his enemy's back.

But the Kakashi lookalike denied him by swinging around quickly and kicking him away.

"Damn it," he muttered. _How are we supposed to defeat someone who knows everything about us, someone who fights like us? Our strengths, our weaknesses, the way we fight... _

"Yahoooo!"

Kakashi winced as Kiba shrieked into his mic.

The Inuzuka was having the time of his life.

Kiba's clone backed away from him, bruised everywhere. He leaped forward, trying a Tunneling Fang.

"That again, huh?" Kiba grinned. "Too bad I know every single thing about my own weaknesses, and I know I can't fight well without my partner! Let's have another go at him, Akamaru!"

"Wait, Kiba!"

"Huh?" Kiba looked up, as Akamaru performed a Tunneling Fang to counter the clone's, both dog and copy getting knocked back. "What is it, Kakashi-sensei?"

"You said something earlier... about knowing your own weaknesses?"

Kiba looked at his clone. "Yeah..."

"That's it," Kakashi whispered, as he threw shuriken at his clone, who threw shuriken back. Throwing star after throwing star fell to the ground harmlessly.

"That's what?"

"They know our weaknesses and our strengths," the Jonin said, as he lifted his forehead protector, opening his Sharingan eye. "But we also know theirs."

Shino jumped back as hostile insects flew towards him. "What do we do with that knowledge in possession?" He raised his arm, and his Kikaichu swarmed out from his sleeve. "Parasitic Insects: Spear!"

His bugs joined together to form a giant purple spear, and flew towards the Shino clone.

The Aburame's clone surrounded himself with his insects, and the spear bounced off the rotating insect wall harmlessly.

"We exploit them," Kakashi replied, running forward and then jumping into the air. Just as his copy was about to use his Sharingan, Kakashi unleashed a flying kick on his cheek.

The copy recovered quickly, but Kakashi didn't give him time to even move. "Fire Style: Trapping Vortex!"

He blew fire towards his clone, and it evolved into a flaming vortex around him. The clone was caged.

_And I know what I would do in this situation,_ Kakashi placed his palm on the ground. _But this copy of me isn't going to have any time to do that. _

"Earth Style: Hardening Cocoon!"

Through the translucent flames, the former ANBU man could make out his clone concentrating, attempting to do a jutsu.

_The Earth Style: Hardening Cocoon hardens the earth, _he eye-smiled at his work. _Nothing can get in... or out. That means you can't use the Earth Style: Hidden Mole Jutsu here... so I have you right where I want you. _

_I wouldn't have known to use the Hardening Cocoon if I wasn't fighting myself. It appears the user of this mirroring technique didn't consider it's setbacks. _

Kakashi did more hand seals, and breathed in.

"Fire Style: Great Dragon Flame Jutsu!"

Flames were spouted again, and this time, the flames took the form of a giant dragon, crashing into the flaming vortex. An explosion came soon after.

A victorious smile present under his mask, Kakashi exited the battlefield.

* * *

**Probably the longest chapter on my story yet, 2,726 words! **

**Alright, I know, I know, not that great. :/ **

**Question of the Day: The ultimate question that's being passed around these days - Sasuke or Naruto for Hokage in canon, and why? Readers who only watch the anime won't know how to answer this though :S **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews. **


	10. The Hideout: Battle for the Kazekage

**Hello everyone. I'm listening to the Raising Fighting Spirit track and playing it on repeat while writing this - it really helps for motivation, especially while writing the fight scenes. **

**Interesting responses as usual. Now to reply. **

_**Jove99**_**: I don't think there's any way Kiba will be Hokage, to be honest! Hahaha. **

_**Nta fanfic**_**: I'm talking about canon, not the story :) **

_**TheOrangeStar802**_**: That is too much? I think it's too little. I love long reviews hahaha :P **

_**SonYukiGoku'sSister**_**: Very satisfactory. Brilliant answer. **

_**SkyRage**_**: Some fantastic points being brought up here :) and I like you, too! :D**

_**Lin**_**: Thanks for the awesome review. What country are you moving to, and from where? Why are you moving? When are you moving? I'm not a stalker, just really curious :P **

**Thanks to _Jove99, GreyJedi1, Nta fanfic, demonic hellfire, AFlashofSilver, TheOrangeStar802, SonYukiGoku'sSister, SkyRage, beisenman1892, Gaaraxx33, Mr. Lionheart, Lin, Guest_ and _chancedaman333 _for the reviews!**

* * *

"Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

Hinata felt beads of sweat rolling down her cheek as she tried to keep up with her clone.

The duo were dealing palmed attacks to each other, both attempting to block out the other's chakra pathway system. However, neither had succeeded.

"8 Trigrams..."

She jumped back, moving into a readied stance.

"... 32 Palms!"

Hinata charged, but her clone had the same ideas. Palms slammed against palms.

_Kakashi-sensei said to exploit our own weaknesses... but what are my weaknesses...? _

"Fang Over Fang!"

Hinata jumped back as two spinning masses came spiraling towards her clone and slammed into her with full force. The clone made no sound, but there was a look of extreme pain on her face.

Kiba and Akamaru jumped back, as the Hinata clone flew backwards, and disappeared.

"If you can't find your own weaknesses, you'll have to leave it to a partner to help you take care of it," Kiba grinned, jumping onto Akamaru.

"Kiba-kun," Hinata smiled. "Thank you."

"Well, we gotta go help Shino," Kiba grinned. "Hop on!"

* * *

"Welcome..."

Team Itachi raced into the hideout, to see a blonde Akatsuki ninja sitting on an unconscious Gaara. His tailed partner stood not far away, with his creepy eyes seemingly staring straight into their soul.

"It looks like they've arrived, hm," Deidara smirked.

"Watch who you're sitting on, bastard!" Naruto screamed at him.

Deidara ignored him. "Now which one of you might be the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki...? Hm..."

Itachi looked at Gaara, and noticed his stomach rising slightly. _He's still breathing. Good. _

A second passed, and suddenly Deidara found himself being forced to leap into the air, as a lightning spear extended towards him.

Sasuke glared coldly at the Akatsuki ninja. "As my friend said... watch who you're sitting on!"

"Hmph," Deidara dug into his bag of clay. "If you won't tell me which one of you is the Jinchuriki, I guess I'll just make every single one of you explode!"

"Deidara," Sasori warned, venom laced in his voice. "Do not try anything you will live to regret." His tail swished in the air, pointing towards his younger partner, emphasizing his words. "We need the Jinchuriki alive."

Deidara sighed. Then his gaze swept towards Itachi, and he glared.

_So they don't know that Naruto is the Jinchuriki,_ Itachi thought, glancing at Naruto, who returned the stare and nodded in understanding. _Let's keep it that way. _

Sasori looked at the entire Leaf team. "Two of these shinobi are of the Uchiha clan, and none of the Uchiha are Jinchuriki. So that leaves only the other two."

Deidara snapped his fingers at Sasori's clever analysis. "Ah, yes! None of those prideful Uchiha bastards would allow-"

Sasuke growled, and jumped forward. "Chidori True Spear!"

Deidara dodged the attack again, as the spear crashed into the wall and exploded, blue lightning bolts flying everywhere.

"Impatient little snot," the former Iwa nin spat. Before Sasuke could attack again, he called forth his clay bird, and mounted it. Gaara was soon caught within it's talons, and the bird flew away. "I'll see you later, Sasori, my man!"

_That fool. Why is he running away?_ Sasori glared harshly at Deidara's back as he exited the cave.

"Gaara!" Naruto yelled, turning and running after Deidara.

"Naruto, wait!" Sakura called, but the whiskered teen had already took off. Looking back and forth between her two Uchiha comrades and Naruto, she first dug into her pocket, pulling out something and handing it to Itachi. Next, she turned and chased after Naruto.

_Ah... I get it. Separation. Well played, Deidara. _

"I suppose it's just us and you," Itachi had a passive expression on his face. "Sasori of the Red Sand, was it?"

Sasori's tail waved dangerously in the air. "The great Itachi Uchiha knows my name. I am flattered."

Sasuke looked at Itachi. "What do we do now?"

"We take this opportunity to lessen the Akatsuki's forces," Itachi said simply. "In other words, kill him."

Sasori chuckled. "But can you?"

"Damn right I can," Sasuke replied. "Sharingan!"

Itachi contemplated using the Mangekyo, but decided against it. His black pupils shifted into their Sharingan form.

"I don't like to keep people waiting," Sasori said evilly. "So I'll finish this quickly."

* * *

Deidara looked back. Behind him, on the ground, was the blonde ninja, and his pink-haired companion.

"Now which one of you is the Jinchuriki, hm...?" He asked himself. The mouth on his right palm open, spitting out a few clay spiders. Deidara dropped them, watchcing as they descended upon the two Konoha nin. "Katsu!"

To the bomber's surprise, the two had shielded themselves with an earth dome surrounding them.

_So one of them uses the Earth Style, _he observed, as the earth dome crumbled, and the duo continued chasing after him.

"Earth Style: Hand of Stone!"

Sakura made six hand seals, and slammed her palm on the ground. From the earth emerged two hands, shaped from stone, flying into the air towards Deidara.

"You can't catch me, hm," Deidara taunted, tossing a few of his clay explosives at one of the hands. It exploded and dissolved into mud. "So don't even-"

The last hand flung something at him - a three-pronged kunai, before dissolving into mud itself.

Immediately, Naruto appeared in front of him, throwing a punch.

Deidara couldn't react quickly enough, and was punched off his ride.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Three of his clones appeared beside him.

"Get Gaara," Naruto ordered. "I'll be-"

"Oh no, you won't be doing anything..."

Looking down, Naruto gasped to see Deidara descending to the ground from the clay bird's talons, grabbing Gaara tightly in his left hand. His right hand made a seal.

"Katsu!"

Swiftly, Naruto threw his Hiraishin Kunai towards Deidara, as the bird exploded along with his Shadow Clones.

Now appearing in front of Deidara again, Naruto aimed another punch. His fellow blonde dodged it this time, and twisted in mid-air to land safely on his feet. Naruto did the same.

"Earth Style: Falling Earth Spears!"

With Gaara now on his back, Deidara dodged the spears of mud.

Sakura rushed into view, now deciding to let her fists do the talking.

Deidara thrust his hand forward, and a flock of clay birds flew towards the pinkette. "Katsu!"

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto yelled.

"Chaaaa!"

Deidara leaped away again, as the tree beside him began to fall. It crashed onto the ground, revealing Sakura behind it, having used the Substitution Jutsu. Her fist was outstretched.

_So this brat has the chakra-enhanced strength of the Fifth Hokage, _he thought, then turned his head to face Naruto, who was now walking up to him, eyes filled with rage. _And this one... uses the Fourth Hokage's Hiraishin. _

A spiralling blue sphere now in his hand, Naruto lunged for Deidara. "Take this! Rasengan!"

Deidara jumped over him, careful not to let the Kazekage slip off his back. Naruto's Rasengan slammed into a large grey stone, completely demolishing it.

He set Gaara down, and Naruto raced to get his friend back.

"Not so fast, hm." Deidara stepped in front of Gaara.

Naruto glared at him. To his infuriation, Deidara smirked in reply.

_That damn Kisame never revealed the gender of the Kyuubi Jinchuriki to anyone except Leader, but with the intel I have... _The mouth on both his palms coughed out some shaped clay. _The brat who uses the Hiraishin... he should be the Kyuubi. Alright... _

Two clay birds appeared in front of him, and he jumped onto one.

"Don't run! We're not finished with you yet," Naruto hissed at him.

Ignoring Naruto, Deidara's bird grabbed Gaara with it's talons once again. The Kyuubi container rushed towards the bird, but his hand merely brushed against it's skin before it flew away.

The remaining bird flew towards Sakura.

Naruto charged. "Get away from her!" He kicked the bird away, but as soon as his foot connected with the winged creature, it exploded.

"My, my, you're not a very bright Jinchuriki, are you, hm?" Deidara laughed, now in the air above them on his clay creation.

"Tell me how bright is this! Rasengan!"

The Akatsuki nin gasped as something painful slammed into his back. "H-How?"

Behind him, Naruto had a victorious smile present on his face. He glanced at the seal he'd planted on the bird, when his hand had briefly made contact with it's clay skin.

Jumping down onto the bird's talons, Naruto extracted Gaara from it, and descended.

He landed on the ground, and Sakura walked up, her face lighting up at the sight of Gaara.

From within the bushes, Deidara peeked at the three, his hand clutching the new spiraled wound on his back.

"Hehehe... as I said... you aren't a very bright Jinchuriki... are you... hm?"

Naruto frowned as Gaara's skin hardened and turned white. It almost felt like clay.

"Katsu!"

Suddenly understanding, Naruto acted on instinct. He pushed Sakura away as hard as he could.

The Clay Clone exploded in his face.

* * *

Itachi looked at the vials Sakura had handed to him. The antidotes.

There were nine of them.

"So essentially, we have nine lives," Sasuke whispered to his brother, looking down at the vials in his hand. "Well, I know someone else who has nine lives, and I think he can help us."

Biting his thumb, Sasuke spread the blood drawn onto his right hand. He did various hand seals, and slammed his palm down on the ground.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

A white, gigantic cat appeared, towering over Sasori.

"Nekomata..." Itachi muttered. "Alright." He pocketed the nine vials, and did a hand seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu."

Two clones appeared either side of him, and they brandished their swords. The trio of Itachis charged at Sasori.

"Nekomata! I need your help," Sasuke looked up at his summon.

"I can see that," the demon cat meowed, as he shrunk to Sasuke's height. "Who's our opponent this time?"

"Sasori of the Red Sand. Heard of him?"

"Not really, no..."

Sasori's tail stabbed into one Itachi, and it dispersed.

The original Itachi jumped back, as Sasori attacked the remaining clone. This one exploded, throwing him back.

"Instead of talking to your cat, maybe you can help me out here."

"Oh, right. Sorry." Sasuke ran up. "Let's go, Nekomata!"

"You got it," the demon cat nodded, and shrunk himself into the size of an ant.

Regaining his composure, Sasori waited for his enemies to attack. "Two Uchihas and a size-shifting cat. Seems pretty easy," he mumbled to himself sarcastically. "They should have at least sent someone to help me out here..."

Nekomata appeared behind Sasori, having snuck past the tailed man when he'd shrank.

"Well, I did say I could handle them alone..." Sasori turned his head slightly.

The dangerous metal tail flew towards Nekomata, but with a growl, the demon cat dodged the tail and landed a heavy scratch on it.

Itachi grinned as the tip of the tail came off.

"Awesome job, Nekomata!" Sasuke shouted in delight.

Sasori jumped into the air, and his mask came down. Opening his mouth, posionous projectiles were fired at Nekomata and Itachi.

"Yikes!" The cat shrank into the size of an ant once again.

"Brother!" Sasuke yelled, running up to Itachi. "Lightning Style: Lightning Barrier!"

He punched the ground, and a barrier was erected, defending the Uchiha brothers from the rain of projectiles.

Sasori landed a distance away. Nekomata appeared in front of him again, with his claw ready to strike the former Suna nin's face, but Sasori opened his mouth, firing his projectiles again.

Nekomata yelped, and shrank.

Sasuke jumped into the fray, getting close enough and then raising his arm. "Chidori Sharp Spear!"

Sasori dodged the chakra weapon, and Itachi appeared beside him in an instant, swinging his katana dangerously. Undeterred, Sasori's tail defended him, clashing with Itachi's sword.

Sasuke frowned. The tip of the tail had regrown by itself.

As Sasori's tail kept Itachi at bay, the Akatsuki nin turned his head slightly, firing his tiresome poisonous projectiles once again.

"Chidori Blade!"

His chakra-powered weapon appeared in his hand, and Sasuke went to work, slashing off any projectile coming his way. Unfortunately, one managed to hit him in the knee.

"Crap."

* * *

"Naruto!"

The smoke from the explosion cleared, and Naruto knelt there on one knee, his top tattered, torn and bloodied.

"Naruto!" Sakura repeated her comrade's name, running over. "I-I'm sorry, you tried to protect me and-"

"It's fine," Naruto smiled, but the smile quickly vanished as he groaned in pain.

"I'll heal you... just-"

Naruto stopped her, and got back up on his feet, albeit with difficulty. "That won't be necessary, Sakura-chan. If I waste anymore time..."

"... You'll get killed!" A voice finished.

From underneath the earth, a hand rose, grabbing Sakura's leg and preventing her from moving. Soon, the hand hardened, turning into white clay. Naruto gasped. "No!"

Deidara walked out from the bushes, grinning madly.

If looks could kill, the blonde Akatsuki would be dead a thousand times over. Naruto had directed a rage-filled glare at Deidara, whose triumphant smirk only intensified his anger.

"Now, come over here and allow me to capture you... or I'll make sure your girlfriend goes out with a bang."

Eyes widening, Naruto's shock quickly turned into rage. "You... you bastard... I'll..."

"You won't be doing anything, hm."

"Naruto, no!"

Naruto turned back. Sakura had a pleading look on her face.

"Don't let him..."

Closing his eyes, Naruto looked back at Deidara. "I'm sorry, Sakura-chan. If your life is on the line..."

"Ah..." Deidara smiled at his own victory. "That's a good Jinchuriki. Come over here, now."

"R-Release Sakura-chan before I-!"

"You aren't in a position to negotiate, hm!" Deidara raised his hands to form a seal. "Now I just have to say one word... one word... and your poor little girlfriend explodes! Hahahaha!"

"No! Wait!"

Deidara's mad laughter stopped. "Unless, of course, you come over here..."

Sakura struggled in vain. The hand seemed to be stuck to her skin. "Naruto!" She shrieked again.

Ignoring her cries, Naruto raised his hands in defeat, a pained expression on his face. "Fine... you... you've got me... I just want her to be safe."

He walked over, his head hung in shame. Sakura tried to move, to stop Naruto, to stop the Akatsuki bastard, but she couldn't.

The clay hand held her in place, and she couldn't use her chakra-enhanced strength to demolish it - or her leg would be crushed as well.

As soon as Naruto got closer, Deidara threw three clay figurines onto the ground.

Three of his explosive spiders appeared, and they latched onto Naruto, their souless eyes keeping watch on his every move.

"You make one move, and-"

"You can't," Naruto glared at his evil opponent. "The Akatsuki needs me alive."

"Oh, you won't die... but I'll make sure you feel extreme pain, hm!" Deidara jumped onto his clay bird. The clay creature opened it's mouth, to reveal Gaara inside. The Gaara on it's talons had been a Clay Clone, as Naruto had painfully discovered.

Deidara offered a hand to Naruto, but he refused to take it, instead jumping onto the bird himself.

"Naruto! No!"

The moment Sakura cried out, the three clay spiders latched onto Naruto's back were flung away.

Deidara turned. "What?!"

On Naruto's back was two tails. The spiky-haired Chunin was now covered in a red-orange chakra cloak.

However, his eyes remained in their normal color of blue.

With a monstrous roar, Naruto made a lunge for Deidara, and tackled him back.

Deidara winced. Touching the cloak made his skin feel extremely hot.

Producing a scroll from his back, Naruto summoned a sword. It was beautifully designed, it's color matching the color of Naruto's chakra cloak.

Soon, the sword was glowing red, infused with Naruto's chakra.

"Fool! You've made a big mistake, hm..." Deidara placed his hands in a seal. "Kat-"

An elegant slash of a sword later, his left wrist had been disconnected from the rest of his arm, and his hand fell off the clay bird into the forest below. Deidara gasped.

Roaring again, Naruto slashed once more, and his right wrist was the next to be severed.

Deidara backed away.

"I don't think you can make anything explode without your hands, can you...?"

"You... you little..."

_He only feigned capture to get close to me so he could do... do this! _

It was Naruto's turn to smirk, as he dropped his sword.

"A ninja... must see through deception!"

Yelling, the cloaked Jinchuriki got on all fours, and jumped at Deidara, his arms outstretched.

* * *

**I was planning for the written battle to be really, really good, so the way I wrote it kinda disappointed me a little, but I'm happy that I'm able to dish a new chapter out. I hope everyone enjoyed it. **

**In the next chapter, the battle between Naruto & Sakura vs Deidara concludes, but the fight between the Uchiha brothers and Sasori is only just beginning! Meanwhile, Team Kakashi defeats their clones and heads to back up Team Itachi. **

**Catch you readers next time. **

_**Question of the Day: Based on what you've just read, do you think Naruto can fully control the power of the Kyuubi now? **_

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews.**


	11. Breaking Hiruko: Sasori's Trump Card!

**Holy crap guys. How long has it been? **

**I'm sorry for not updating for like - forever. I just got bored with this story for awhile - let's live with it, every author gets bored with their story once in awhile - but I've really tried my best to get this out. I started work on this story weeks ago but I've only finally finished it today. Sorry about that. **

**Every review telling me that it was good and that they wanted to find out what happened next made me feel really guilty and pushed me to complete this chapter, so thank you for those reviews! **

**I'm not going to be replying to reviews this chapter because I feel really lazy (as always) but do rest assured I read and enjoy every single one of them, yes, even the ones telling me my story should go fuck itself. Hey, a review is a review right? **

**Lastly, I have got a Teen Titans and Dota 2 crossover story up - _Teen Titans: Dota Edition_. It's my first time writing a crossover and a FanFiction of Teen Titans/Dota 2 so I would really appreciate the feedback, even if you have no idea what any of those two are! Basically it's just superheroes and good guys kicking ass. So check it out if you want to.**

**That's all for now - enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Sasuke drank up the antidote, and threw the vial to the ground. Eight more vials left.

Itachi and Nekomata stood beside him, watching Sasori closely.

"What? Is that all you've got?" He taunted.

Using his size-shifting ability, Nekomata shrank into the size of a pea, hiding in Sasuke's hair.

"When you get close to the enemy, I'll strike," the monster cat meowed.

Nodding, Sasuke charged.

"Sasuke, be careful!" Itachi yelled.

Sasori's tail came flying at him, and Sasuke jumped into the air. Letting off a battle cry, the Uchiha grabbed onto the tail. "Nekomata!"

The cat leaped onto the tail, hurriedly running towards Sasori, enlarging as he got within range, and landed a heavy scratch. "Got him!" Nekomata said triumphantly, but was soon forced to shrink again as Sasori fired his poisonous missiles.

Itachi looked on in surprise. Three very visible scratch marks were now present on their opponent's face - but there was no blood.

"Urgh!"

Sasuke was thrown back, as the tail wriggled free of his grip. It descended on him, stabbing him in the chest.

However, he turned into a log, and reappeared behind Sasori, smirking.

Swiftly, he did the hand seals, and Lightning chakra flooded into his hand.

Sasori attempted to dodge, but Sasuke was too quick.

"Chidori!"

Itachi paid close observation, but there seemed to be no pain registered on the Akatsuki ninja's face.

"Is that all you've got?" Sasori taunted.

Sasuke frowned, and pressed his Chidori deeper within his opponent.

In response, Sasori's tail flew up, attempting to pierce his chest. Sasuke withdrew his hand and jumped away just in time.

The young Jonin stared at Sasori's back. There was a very visible hole in his back now, but he didn't seem to be in any pain.

Itachi looked at the injuries Sasori had suffered, studying them closely.

"Is he applying some kinda jutsu that makes him immune to pain?" Sasuke wondered.

"Perhaps..." Itachi mumbled in reply.

A lightbulb flicked on in his head.

_Damn it, why have I only thought of this now? _

_If this man is really Sasori of the Red Sand, then he doesn't fit his appearance profile from years ago... at all. Sure, people change in appearances throughout the years, but this guy... he doesn't fit the profile at all! _

_Sasori of the Red Sand is supposed to have red hair, and a slightly feminine look. This man doesn't have red hair, in fact he looks like he's suffering from some kind of hair disease. I mean, seriously, look at his hairstyle... _

_Sasori of the Red Sand is a user of the Puppet Master Jutsu, and I've heard the most intelligent geniuses of geniuses of Puppet Master Jutsu can carve and design puppets as battle armors. _

_Is that what he's doing? _

_In that case, we will have to break his armor, and then take out the real him that's inside. _

_I'm not sure I'm a hundred percent correct, but it's a theory worth testing! _

"Sasuke," Itachi whispered to him. "Hit him with your strongest attack. Try to split him apart."

Sasuke shot him a funny look. "I didn't know you were a sadist."

"I'm not," Itachi rolled his eyes. "I simply think that is not our real enemy. It's an armor. I want to test out my theory."

Sasuke had a surprised look on his face, before his lips stretched into a grin. "Bro, you're a genius."

The younger Uchiha charged up towards Sasori. Itachi brandished his katana, and raced forward as well. Sasuke smashed his fists together, as Lightning chakra sizzled between them.

"Chidori Sharp Spear!"

Sasuke jumped into the air, his arm thrust forward. A lightning spear edged towards Sasori, but his tail flew up to defend himself. The metallic tail clashed with the spear, holding it off.

Itachi was on Sasori in an instant, stabbing his sword through his cloak.

Sasori looked down at Itachi with a taunting look in his eyes. "Was I supposed to feel any pain?"

"Not really," Itachi replied. "But you will, soon."

The puppet master cackled. "Not if I kill you first."

"I don't think so. If you try to use your tail and attack me, the attack your tail is guarding you against will come down on you."

"Ah, but you forget, my only weapon is not my tail."

Smiling, Itachi's left hand sank down towards his own waist. "I didn't."

The next instant, Sasori had opened his mouth. Itachi took half a second to reveal a kunai with an explosive tag attached in his left hand, and flung it into Sasori's mouth.

As he did, the poison senbon flying from the Akatsuki ninja's mouth struck him, and Itachi jumped back, wincing at the pain.

But it didn't matter - for within the next two seconds, Sasori exploded into pieces.

"Gotcha," Itachi smirked, in spite of the pain he was feeling. Quickly, he reached for his pocket, pulling out a vial and drinking the antidote. _That brings us to seven... _

'Sasori' had shattered into pieces. In the center of all the strewn body parts was a young redhead, donning the Akatsuki cloak.

"That's the one," Itachi said triumphantly. "The real Sasori."

Sasuke nodded, as Nekomata appeared by his side. He observed the criminal's features. "He doesn't look very old at all. In fact, he looks my age..."

"Yes," his brother agreed with a frown on his face. "He does look too young to be Sasori."

"Well, whoever he is, I'll finish him," Sasuke replied determinedly, holding his fist up. It crackled with strong Lightning chakra.

The redhead looked up at the Uchiha brothers, with an indifferent look in his eyes.

"My, my..."

* * *

Sakura looked down, to see the clay hand on her foot had somewhat melted. Although disgusted, she ignored it and ran towards Naruto.

Naruto was standing over his fellow blonde, who was now on the ground. Scratches and blood littered Deidara's body, and his Akatsuki cloak had literally been shredded apart. He also had his eyes shut tight.

"Is he dead?" Sakura mumbled.

As the red chakra over Naruto dissipated, he collapsed. "Uh!"

"Naruto!" Sakura knelt down. "What-"

"I'm fine, Sakura-chan" Naruto assured his teammate as he panted. "I'm just exhausted from using the Kyuubi's chakra. I can't handle it very well yet."

"The Kyuubi's chakra?" Sakura questioned. "So that was..."

Naruto gave a knowing smile, and got up, walking to a tree and then leaning on it. "I... uh... think I need to rest."

"Definitely," his companion chuckled. She turned back, only to gasp.

Deidara had vanished without a trace.

* * *

"No one has ever forced me out of my Hiruko armor before. I can see why the two of you are of the Uchiha clan."

"Are you Sasori?" Sasuke's voice was laced with suspicion.

"Why do you want to know so much when you're going to die?"

Nekomata growled at him. "You're the one who's going to die when I scratch out your eyeballs!"

Sasori chuckled. "Threatening me is meaningless."

"Then we'll put our words into action," Sasuke jumped forward, a Chidori Blade manifesting in his hand. "Let's go, Nekomata!"

The demon cat joined his summoner, leaping towards Sasori with a shriek of intent.

Itachi thought about berating Sasuke for being reckless, but quickly decided to back his brother up instead, and formed the Shadow Clone seal.

The original and his three clones brandished their swords, and charged.

As Nekomata edged closer to the Akatsuki redhead, he cast his genjutsu.

Sasori was unfazed, and in the next second, dispelled it easily.

Nekomata was both infuriated and surprised. "He dispelled my-"

A scroll produced from Sasori's sleeve was soon up in the feline's face. Nekomata shrank just in time, as a claw shot out of the scroll. A body and a head followed.

The newcomer to the battle jumped back to join Sasori, and raised his left arm. A moment later, dozens of other arms sprang out, knocking the oncoming Sasuke back.

Itachi frowned at this new development. He took notice of the stranger, apparently a puppet - as the Uchiha genius could see from the way Sasori was flexing his fingers in sync with the puppet's movement.

When he scanned his appearance, Itachi pinched himself. "What in the world...?"

Sasori smirked at Itachi's look. "I see you have finally noticed my puppet."

Sasuke was now squinting his eyes, looking at the puppet thoroughly. "Hey, that guy looks familiar... like someone I've seen in a book."

"Of course he's familiar," their opponent replied coldly. "Meet... the Third Kazekage of Suna."

* * *

Deidara huffed as he sprinted through the forest. Tiredness soon overcame him, and he collapsed onto the ground.

"Not in a very good state, are you?"

He didn't need to look up - the rogue-nin recognized that voice. "Zetsu, hm. You aren't going to eat me, right? "

"You'll probably taste like clay. I don't do clay," the cheeky-sounding voice of White Zetsu spoke.

Deidara smirked, getting back on his feet with, well, only his feet. "Good to hear."

"Don't change the subject," Black Zetsu replied. "You failed to get the Kyuubi, and now you've lost the Ichibi."

"Not my fault," the blonde bomber said defensively. "That Kyuubi brat was strong. I can't handle him alone."

"You should have stuck by Sasori then."

"Hey, I didn't know he was going to be that strong! I managed to defeat the Ichibi on my own!"

Zetsu shook his head, as the black side of him continued. "Never be too overconfident, Deidara. Now we're left without the Ichibi and the Kyuubi."

"And his arms!" White Zetsu chipped in.

"Oh, yeah," Deidara eyed his left shoulder. "Kakuzu will be doing plenty of sewing when we meet again."

"Kakuzu won't want to waste his time sewing your arms back," Black Zetsu retorted, matter-of-factly.

Deidara shrugged. "I'll bribe him. Always works." He looked into the distance. "What's up with my man Sasori, then?"

White Zetsu decided to speak this time. "Sasori is holding his own against the Uchiha brothers. He's going to use his trump card. Those Uchihas are goners for sure!"

"His trump card," Deidara muttered. He chuckled. "Yeah. Definitely goners, hm."

* * *

Sasuke's eyes widened. "Wait, what?"

Itachi frowned. "That... it's the Third Kazekage alright. But he went missing years ago. What's this-"

"Ah, yes. That. Suna worked tirelessly for years to find out who this mysterious kidnapper was - someone who could stand up to the formidable Sandaime's Iron Sand jutsu," Sasori looked up, as if he was reminiscing. A wry smile crept onto his lips. "That person... was me."

Itachi was shocked out of his wits, but kept his composure. "And this is... him...?"

"I preserved his body," Sasori thrust his arm forward, and the Third Kazekage flew in the direction of his hand. "I modified him. And after a year or so, he was finally ready to be used... as my personal human puppet."

Sasuke growled at him. "You're sick."

"Sick? Yes, yes... maybe I am," the puppeteer laughed. "Don't look so... jealous, though. The two of you will be going into my collection once I'm done with you."

The mere thought of being a weapon for an evildoer made Sasuke gag. "Let's see about that."

"Oh, yes... yes... we'll see," Sasori grinned at him. It wasn't a friendly grin of any sort.

More like a 'I want to kill you, and rip you apart' grin.

His fingers moved quickly, and the human puppet that was once the Kazekage charged towards them, arms raised.

"He's coming!" Itachi warned. He placed his hands together, forming an array of hand seals as the body of the former Sand leader inched closer.

Sasuke let off a battle cry, also charging for Sasori's puppet, his right hand crackling with electricity.

Sasori had a wicked smile on his face.

The battle was only just beginning.

* * *

**Sasori is an evil, evil man, isn't he? **

**In the next chapter, Sasuke and Itachi must fight and defeat the Third Kazekage. **

**Again, I am so sorry for the delay of this chapter and I thank every reader if you're still reading this for staying loyal. I love you guys. **

**Question of the Day: If you were a ninja in the shinobi world, what chakra nature would you want to have? For me personally, it's a tough choice between the Fire Style and the Wind Style. **

**Leave your interesting responses in the reviews.**


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